Cherrywood changes plans because of technology sector slowdown

Joint Venture, the company developing the Cherrywood Science and Technology Park at Loughlinstown, Co Dublin, has lodged planning applications with Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council for changes in relation to the next phase of its campus. The changes reflect the slowdown in the technology industry, and also the continuing strong demand for more broadly-based industrial space.

Already the park has attracted high-quality tenants including Lucent Technologies, which has taken a 60,000 sq ft unit, and Dell Computers, which has taken a second unit of 40,000 sq ft.

The developers, which include the council itself in a partnership with British Land and Dunloe Ewart, are now seeking permission for changes which will allow a more flexible use of the next five units.

Envisaged at Cherrywood is an estate of industrial units, most of which are three storeys in height and which vary in size from about 26,900 sq ft to just under 86,080 sq ft. Five new units are envisaged to round off the current phase on a 60 acres plus site, while a second phase, on which Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council has an option, is being planned. The development already enjoys distributor roads, entrance and vehicular drop-off areas, carparking, landscaping and services.

A park centre building of just under 30,000 sq ft is to be developed, comprising a lower level creche and telecommunications rooms, a ground level containing retail units, and a first floor containing a cafe/restaurant, management offices and ancillary accommodation. A second floor will contain additional management office space.

The changes, while relatively minor, reflect the current hiccup in the high-tech sector - and the developers intend to make the park available to a broader range of business activities. Changes including a conversion from high technology to office use are therefore proposed, while alterations to the permission for some retail units are envisaged. A financial institution, for instance, is to become a shop.

Cherrywood is currently accessed from the N11 at Wyattville, where an interchange is to be built linking traffic with Dun Laoghaire Port. But the real advantage of the site lies in its second access route, to be provided to the South Eastern Motorway - giving access to Dublin's C-Ring and all major routes out of the capital. It is also conveniently located for the bulk of the south County Dublin workforce, which lives within a five-mile radius of Cherrywood.

According to Mr Louis Monks of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, the park is so well placed that, had it been ready on time, a number of big companies which have relocated from Sandyford to Citywest would instead have moved to Cherrywood. Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown already owns the Sandyford Industrial Park, which in recent years has seen its density rise. This is due to a change from buildings which occupy less than half of their site surface area to buildings which occupy about one-and-a-half times site surface area, through the use of additional floors.

"While Sandyford was innovative for its time when it was developed by Dublin County Council, the densities have tightened up a lot in recent years and Cherrywood will not be such a low-rise estate," Mr Monks said.

"Originally the idea was for all science and technology industries, but since the changes in that industry in recent times we have decided to change the focus of some units to be able to accommodate different businesses, like M J Flood for instance, which relocated from Sandyford to Citywest to secure a bigger building. Now that kind of size and availability is located at Cherrywood."

Putting a price on the whole cost of the venture is difficult, but Mr Monks reckons the cost to the developers is in the region of £110 million (€140m). When completed, Cherrywood looks well-positioned to rival or best any of the major regional parks such as Park West/Citywest or that envisaged for Clonee/Dunboyne.