€1 billion plan for Northside shopping centre

TownCentres: The 37-year-old Northside shopping centre, in Coolock, Dublin 17, is to be demolished and a new shopping centre built in another location as part of a €1 billion proposal to develop a "Northside Town Centre".

The planning application for the first phase of the proposal is about to be submitted to Dublin City Council, which has worked with the majority shareholder in the Northside shopping centre, N1 Property Holdings Ltd, to develop a plan.

Dublin City Council first indicated its support for the regeneration of the area in its development plan 2005-2011 and stipulated the need to create a higher density, mixed-use urban centre, with a vibrant and animated town centre, and good quality civic and urban spaces.

N1 Property Holdings is a subsidiary of Headland Property Holdings , the property vehicle of Brian O'Farrell.

Designed by Murray O'Laoire architects, the first phase of the scheme will involve a new retail centre with a gross area of 63,728sq m (685,962sq ft), 940 residential units, a pool and leisure centre in one building, a community centre and library, HSE medical centre, crèche, additional community buildings, and a sports changing facility.

The shopping centre will have two floors of retail over a single basement floor of car parking. It will have two main anchor units with a series of very large and medium-sized retail units.

The anchor units will be accessed to the rear of the main circulation wintergarden thus drawing patrons through the centre. A large food court is on the first floor facing south, overlooking the main parkland with panoramic views of the Dublin skyline.

In phase two, the old Northside shopping centre will be demolished and there will be a further 11,924sq m (128,349sq ft) of retail in a pedestrianised zone that connects with the civic plaza, community buildings and retail centre.

There will also be a cinema, sports bar and restaurant, a landmark office tower, crèche and 400 residential units.

The residential development proposes a variety and mix of units ranging from one, two and three-bed apartments, and two, three and four-bed townhouses, duplexes and mews-style homes. The development will vary in height from five to six storeys with one-storey set back along the Oscar Traynor and Kilmore roads, decreasing in height to three-storey duplex units. The residential units along Oscar Traynor Road are arranged to create a defined street edge around U-shaped blocks on landscaped semi-private garden areas.

The two buildings housing the community centre, library, pool and leisure centre will be two to three-storeys in height, and will be like pavilion buildings within the main civic space. It is hoped they will animate the square along with the adjoining cafés, restaurants, cinemas and entertainment elements of the high street retail.

The brief for the community centre and library has been developed by Dublin City Council in consultation with user groups and stakeholders. The pool and leisure centre will be adjacent to the community centre/library and linked by a first floor pedestrian bridge that connects the new civic space to the main retail centre and adjacent square at the medical centre.

Other elements of the plan include the widening of the Santry river to create a water feature, landscaping to a riverside parkland, new playgrounds, a new civic plaza, new changing facilities, a new quality bus lane, realignment of Clonshaugh Road to connect with Kilmore Road at the new interchange, and a new pedestrian bridge and road crossings along Oscar Traynor Road.