Blanchardstown centre to mark 10th anniversary

ShoppingCentres: Four days of celebrations get underway this week to mark 10 years of the Blanchardstown Retail and Leisure Complex in west Dublin.

The party is to say "thank you" to the centre's customers, the local community and staff, says the centre's general manager, Michael O'Hagan. He described the centre as a "symbol of the economic and community strength of Blanchardstown. It truly is a community partnership," he said.

The centre has been an unqualified success over the decade since it opened, says O'Hagan. It now attracts 17.2 million visitors annually and an estimated 140.7 million people have come to the centre since 1996.

A number of factors have contributed to making the centre a success, he believes. "I think a lot of it has to do with the shopping mix. There is something for everyone and that is the big appeal. People come back again and again."

The centre offers 110,000sq m (1.184 million sq ft) of retail space and there are 186 retailers based there. Total employment reaches 5,000 - 200 of them centre staff. There are shops but also about 40 eateries, a cinema complex, a swimming pool at the nearby leisure centre and an oratory.

The centre is helped by its location on the N3 just off the M50. There are high quality access roads leading to and from the centre which has its own interchange on the N3. "All roads lead to Blanchardstown, everything is there," says O'Hagan.

He also believes that the centre's 7,000 free car-parking spaces serve to encourage shoppers, particularly in an era when some centres are beginning to charge for associated car-parking, as at Dundrum Town Centre.

Clearly, the retailers at the centre are happy, given the footfall. They may also derive some satisfaction from the expected rent increases which are currently under negotiation. Traders are facing rent increases of at least 60 per cent, steep, but this is likely to be significantly below the increases expected to be sought by competing shopping centres in the Dublin area.

Green Property Company has a rent roll of more than €29 million from the centre. The last general review in 2001 settled with increases of more than 90 per cent. Green's decision to go for what it calls a "modest" increase this time around is linked to its desire to retain the high number of independent traders which, with the centre's many multiples, gives Blanchardstown an appealing mix for shoppers.

The centre has ambitious plans for the future, O'Hagan says. A new fashion park opens next spring, and a new car-park and bus interchange are on the way. The centre is developing expansion plans through to 2011, he says. "The future is looking very exciting and challenging."

Longer term objectives include the opening of significant new space at the centre to allow for another anchor tenant.

O'Hagan also expects new opportunities to present themselves with the planned Metro link.

For the moment, however, his focus is on the shorter term and the birthday celebrations. The four-day party kicks off this Friday and there are plans to have the Taoiseach Bertie Ahern on hand to do the honours at the opening ceremony.

There will be €10,000 of centre vouchers up for grabs, fashion shows, face painting and magic shows to keep smaller patrons busy.

"We look forward to welcoming visitors throughout the celebrations programme to share in the festivities and hope they continue to benefit from the centre as a central part of their town's infrastructure," O'Hagan says.