Fears deepen that shopping centre in Kilkenny won't be opening before Christmas

The prospect of Ferrybank Shopping Centre opening before Christmas has been dealt a fresh blow.

Councillors were recently informed that the local authority have yet to receive correspondence in relation to a possible opening date from Dunnes Stores.

This update was provided earlier this week to the elected members of Piltown Municipal District, who meet at Ferrybank Library on the site of Ferrybank Shopping Centre.

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Cllr Ger Frisby said that local constituents are being vocal in their interest in the opening of the site.

"I've received two phone calls only this week," he told local authority representatives.

"We were hoping originally for a Christmas 2023 reopening. Is there anything we can do to turn the screw a bit more?"

Director of Services, Sean McKeown, highlighted that fellow Director of Services, Denis Malone, has written to Dunnes again in relation to the issue.

"We have been writing to them consistently," he affirmed.

It was also reiterated that Dunnes Stores are a private company and as such have no obligation to engage with the local authority on the issue.

BACKGROUND

Ferrybank Shopping Centre is a vast complex on the Kilkenny-Waterford border that has been mostly empty since its completion in 2008.

For over a decade, the site was the centre of a legal dispute between Dunnes Stores, who were originally signed on as the anchor tenant, and Deerland Construction Ltd, a company that transferred the loans for the building to NAMA.

Back in March of this year, it was revealed that Dunnes Stores purchased and now have ownership of the centre.

Since that purchase, a large amount of remedial work has been conducted, prompting anticipation of an inevitable opening.