The opening date for the new shopping centre in Bray, which was due to open in 2020, has been revised to January next year.
Bray Councillor Erika Doyle said yesterday that most of the main construction work is nearly complete.
“Huge challenges have presented themselves over the past 18 months including the lockdowns, labour shortage in the construction industry and supply issues globally. Delighted to see that progress has been made on the site given these enormous challenges,” Cllr Doyle said.
It’s hoped that the shopping centre car park will still open in time for Christmas shopping this year.
The recent announcement has been met with mixed responses due to multiple revised planned opening dates over the past two years.
In August, Councillor Joe Behan raised concerns about the lack of clarity on the shopping centre’s progress as well as who the main anchor tenant will be.
Local assumptions have suggested that retail giant Penney’s will be the anchor tenant, but this has not been confirmed.
Planning permission for the development was granted to Wicklow County Council by An Bord Pleanala in 2017, for a 13,000m2 retail and cinema development at the heart of Bray’s Main Street. The development was estimated to cost €24M at the time.
