Harvey Nichols and Selfridges have made close assessments of the planned EUR80 million (£56.4 million) Gaiety Centre, just off Grafton Street in Dublin.
The proposed centre will be in South King Street, recently pedestrianised and less than 100 metres from the top of Grafton Street, Ireland's most fashionable shopping street.
The centre's promoters aim to cash in on the huge demand for large retail space in the Grafton Street area. The 20-year-old Gaiety Centre building was built for Eircom, the Irish telecoms operator, and was bought for EUR32 million (£22.6 million) last December by Castlethorn Construction.
Now, Dublin-based architect A & D Wejchert has devised a spectacular contemporary rebuild, to include a 10 metre-high glass wall for the entire 65 metre facade on ground floor and first floor level. The design team inspected similar developments in London, Manchester and Dusseldorf.
The redevelopment idea has just started to go through planning and, if successful, the centre should be open for business in autumn 2004. The working title, 'Gaiety Centre', is likely to be changed.
Each of the four floors in the centre will have close to 15,000 sq ft (1,390 sq m) of space, giving very large floor plates that are impossible to obtain elsewhere in the Grafton Street area. Total retail space will be about 80,000 sq ft (7,430 sq m).
Rents being sought by the sole agent Harrington Bannon reflect the likely demand. The quoting rent for the ground floor - at EUR4,440 (£3,130) per sq m Zone A - falls to about EUR400 (£282) per sq m for the top two floors.
Service charges, undecided as yet, will be 'minimal'.
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