Planning move to double Liffey Valley aims for `critical mass'

A planning application is to be lodged this week to allow Liffey Valley Shopping Centre in west Dublin to be more than doubled in size to over 500,000 sq ft. If the move is approved by the planners, the complex will be around the same size as Blanchardstown Town Centre.

Unlike Blanchardstown, Liffey Valley has been trading below expectations for much of the time since it opened last October. The recent decision by South Dublin County Council to lift the cap on the volume of retail space will allow the centre to achieve what the owners call a "critical mass" - in effect a greater variety of stores to broaden its appeal. The original assumption by the promoters that, like many UK centres, Liffey Valley could operate successfully without a food-store has proven wide of the mark.

Many of the smaller traders complain that while they are busy most weekends and that while the average spend per customer is higher than at rival shopping centres, they - and apparently Boots - are not getting the regular spin-off from families doing their weekly grocery shopping. To deal with this shortcoming, the owners have now sought planning permission for a stand-alone supermarket and department store alongside the shopping centre.

Tesco had originally planned a store of around 80,000 sq ft when it bought the 11-acre site for £25 million, but it has scaled down the foodstuffs element to comply with the cap imposed by the Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey.

It was Tesco's plans for out-of-town mega-stores at Liffey Valley, Malahide and a south Dublin location that prompted the move against the big multiples. It is generally accepted that the Government stricture was as much a reprimand for Tesco's insensitive handling of the issue of stocking Irish goods as it was about the more fundamental question of allowing out-of-town superstores to drain life out of cities and towns.

While Tesco is lodging a planning application for a total floor of 58,640 sq ft, it has specified that the grocery element will comply with the Government's cap of 32,000 sq ft.

Separately, the owners of the shopping centre have sought planning permission for 35 additional stores with a total floor area of 254,371 sq ft. This is expected to include a department store with about 100,000 sq ft.

The developers, Barkhill Ltd, are also seeking approval for a further 104,000 sq ft of buildings, to be used for a variety of purposes including a restaurant, library, office suites and a post office.

The owners of Liffey Valley will contend that once the food-store opens and the extra space is available to accommodate a greater mix of tenants, they will be in a position to compete head-to-head with Blanchardstown.

O'Callaghan Properties owns the land earmarked for the £100 million extension to the shopping centre. However, it is thought likely the other joint developer, Grosvenor House, will want to acquire Mr O'Callaghan's interest to consolidate its hold on the centre along with its investment partner, General Accident. That arrangement currently gives GA an 80 per cent stake in the centre, with the balance being held by Grosvenor.

The letting agents, Hamilton Osborne King, were able to pick and choose the traders for Liffey Valley because of the limited space available once it had allocated the large anchor stores.

Liffey Valley with its penchant for designer names caters largely for middle to upper end of the market shoppers. Some smaller traders who are finding the going tough will be hoping to hang in until the centre is given a broader appeal . . . . and supermarket.