The urban regeneration specialist, Neptune Group, has paid £5.5m for one of Northern Ireland’s “premier boutique retail outlet centres”.
The Linen Green designer village near Dungannon, County Tyrone, was originally developed between the early 1990s and mid-2000s as a designer village by local entrepreneur Peter Dolan whose property empire collapsed during the recession. His loans were taken over by Ireland’s National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) which last year sold them on to American fund manager Cerberus.
Frequently described as one of the Province’s most “picturesque” retail destinations, the Linen Green is home to high-end retailers such as Bedeck, Ulster Weavers, Foxford and the Lingerie Room. It also has a number of coffee shops and restaurants, offices and several healthcare occupiers.
“The site has an impressive footfall and has the advantage of being located a very short distance from Junction 15 of the M1 motorway and within 45 minutes’ drive of 90 per cent of Northern Ireland’s population,” explained Neptune Group director, Patrick Heffron.
“We feel the scheme still offers fantastic potential and we plan on adding to the already vibrant tenant mix by repositioning it to create a really exciting retail experience.” The entire scheme extends to around 150,000 sq ft.
The Linen Green is also seen as historically important within the mid-Ulster area as a former base for the linen industry. It currently hosts a small museum and exhibition centre, as a tribute to the area’s industrial past which a local community group, with the backing its new owner, now plan to expand.
The outlet’s acquisition by a London-based company has already been welcomed by Roger Burton, the mayor of Dungannon & South Tyrone Council. “I view the Linen Green as a great asset to the area and anything that makes its future a little bit more secure, and helps it grow and prosper, is good news for Dungannon,” he said.
After training as a pharmacist, Dolan built up the Jermon empire of companies. One of its property subsidiaries also developed a 40,000 sq ft Tesco in his hometown while others amassed a significant portfolio of office and retail property in Belfast, including the Scottish Mutual Building and Donegall Arcade.
Dolan’s empire also extended into Poland, but from 2007 he began to lose control of his assets as, one by one, lenders began repossessing his sites. NAMA eventually sold the Scottish Mutual Building to Tullymore House, owners of the Galgorm Resort and Spa.
Established in 2001, the Neptune Group has delivered schemes with a collective gross development value in excess of one-billion pounds. Another of its Northern Ireland schemes involves the redevelopment of Belfast’s former Belvoir Park Hospital site, which it bought last year for £4.4m.
