Unveiled: New heart of Cork

ONE of the country’s biggest property developers – whose latest venture is a state of the art €500 million shopping precinct in Cork City – has criticised the NAMA initiative.

“I am not a fan of NAMA at all, I never supported NAMA,” said Owen O’Callaghan.

NAMA was organised between banks and the Government while developers were “kept very much in the dark”.

Mr O’Callaghan, who also developed the Liffey Valley Shopping Centre in Dublin, Mahon Point in Cork, and Arthur’s Quay in Limerick, added: “We have been kept out of the loop completely, we haven’t been consulted.”

His company’s loans “are performing loans, all our funding arrangements are as they should be,” he stressed.

“We have absolutely no difficulties and we would much prefer to be left alone and have nothing to do with NAMA.

One of the most significant urban renewal projects ever undertaken by O’Callaghan in Cork resulted in the opening of the first new residential and retail street to be developed in the city in over 200 years.

Opera Lane, developed at a cost of €500m by O’Callaghan Properties, takes in two city centre blocks and adds in excess of 200,000sq ft to the retail capacity of the city, as well as 61 apartments.

It has attracted a number of international fashion chains, including Topshop, Gap, River Island, New Look, Next and H&M, the Swedish clothing company, which yesterday opened its doors to customers.

The O’Callaghan Properties managing director said he believed there was a need for the Opera Lane development, in addition to a €100m retail and office block development at Half Moon St, due to open mid-November, despite the recession.

“The whole Opera Lane theme is based around providing sufficient space, which all the outlets need... Cork was not providing that,” said Mr O’Callaghan.

The property magnate said fashion chains wanted to operate over three or four storeys, and that his development could offer them 25,000sq ft.

With 80% of the retail space in Opera Lane already taken – and expected to be trading by Christmas – Mr O’Callaghan said the balance is “under negotiation” and likely to be trading by next February or March.

“I think it is a great vote of confidence in the city. It is a large-scale regeneration project which honours a company commitment to the city centre which we made when we developed Mahon Point. It transforms the retail offer in the city centre and gives international retailers the space which up to now was simply not available.

“The fact that we have attracted so many global names already in the current climate speaks volumes for the project and for Cork itself. It’s a real shot in the arm for the city, it will lift retail and business generally and we are delighted with the outcome.”

Mr O’Callaghan said the development climate in Cork city was “still pretty healthy, though not anything like what it was”. He said the city had enough retail space “for the moment”.

Mr O’Callaghan also said he did not believe one of his early city projects, Merchant’s Quay, was in danger.