1,100 apartments set for Retail Park
By Maurice Garvey
A PROPERTY group that bought out the Royal Liver Retail park on the Naas Road is proposing to build 1,100 rental apartments and an 18-storey office tower on the site.
The low-rise park was acquired for €25m by Allied Real Estate Group (AREG).
1,100 rental apartments proposed for The Royal Liver Retail Park on the Naas Road
An Areg-related company has lodged plans to clear the
3.8 hectare site and build nine blocks, all of at least seven storeys.
As well as apartments and offices, the proposals includes a co-living block with 203 single bedrooms.
The proposed 18-storey office building would be over 120 metres high, with enough room for 1,500 workers.
The local area plan for the Naas Road identifies Royal Liver Retail Park as a key redevelopment site suitable for mid-rise buildings up to 50 metres.
The retail park – Ireland’s first – opened in 1990 and was previously owned by Meath developer Willie Smyth, who bought it for €60m in 2005.
Smyth’s loans transferred to Nama and were subsequently bought by Deutsche Bank.
Allied is headed by experienced property investors Adrian Langan and Cathal McGinley.
Tenants at the Retail Park include Homebase, Harry Corry, Carpetright, Euro Giant, Bargaintown and Furniture District.
Located beside the Luas red line in Kylemore, the Retail Park has 500 customer car-parking spaces.
Smyth applied for a radical redevelopment of the Royal Liver Retail Park in 2009, in a mixed-use scheme that included six blocks ranging from eight to 26 storeys.
The plan was rejected by An Bord Pleanála.
