High powered
Published: 18 February, 2008
Garrett Kelleher, the 46-year-old Irish developer behind the vast Chicago Spire apartment development, which stands at more than 600 metres tall, in the eponymous US city, has also spearheaded Ireland's first multicultural shopping centre - Moore Street Mall in central Dublin, which opened recently.
Kelleher, who is from Dublin, went to Belvedere College, then spent a year at Trinity College, Dublin, before heading to New York on a tennis scholarship.
From there he moved to Chicago, where he started a painting and decorating business, refurbishing and redeveloping rundown apartment buildings. By the time he returned to Dublin from the US in 1996, he was employing 200 people in Chicago.
Kelleher first founded Shelbourne Development in Dublin, and the company now has offices in Dublin, France and the US, and has been responsible for a series of major property acquisitions in Ireland, the UK, France and the US.
Much of his present focus is on promoting his 150-storey Chicago Spire development, designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava. On completion in 2011, it will be the second tallest building in the world, after the Burj in Dubai.
Billionaire Donald Trump, who is developing residential property nearby, has described the project as "financial suicide" in the present economic climate.
In Ireland, Shelbourne Development has invested heavily in the past few years in many sites not only in Dublin but in other locations such as Limerick. In Dublin it redeveloped and then sold on the former Virgin Megastore on Aston Quay, doing the same with a university student housing scheme in Limerick.
Recently Kelleher sold 23 per cent of his Irish property portfolio to the Royal Bank of Scotland for about €200m; in return, the bank is providing him with long-term mezzanine finance facilities.
In Britain, Kelleher has numerous property investments, including the Lloyds of London building, which he bought in 2004. Shelbourne also has an office in France, with a number of projects and investments in both France and Brussels.
In Ireland, Shelbourne Developments recently completed and opened the Moore Street Mall in Dublin, which has about 2,700 sq m of retail space, located at the junction of Parnell Street and Moore Street. It declines to say how much the mall cost to build and fit out, but centre manager Darren Morrison explains that by the start of 2008, it was practically fully let, with more than 30 retail units and an international food market. The company won't disclose rent levels, but says they are very competitive for the area.
Multicultural traders, mainly from eastern Europe, Africa and Asia, are located in the centre. Morrison says that often, new immigrants into Ireland have very little English, but they can go to the centre and can buy products from home without problems in asking for what they want.
The centre sells a lot of food from Lithuania, Bulgaria and Africa, as well as many other countries, via the international food market.
"In addition," he says, "we have a wide variety of beauty and healthcare shops, jewellery, fashion, electronics, gifts and homeware outlets."
Morrison adds that the diversity of traders under the one roof makes for an exciting and varied work environment.
He also says the mall is getting a great reaction from Irish shoppers. "They like the fact that there is more variety and choice, and no high street brands, while multicultural shoppers flock to the centre in their droves for food and traditional clothing."
He says that the centre has contributed greatly to the regeneration of the area. "It can only complement future developments, like that planned by Chartered Land for the nearby Carlton cinema site, and they in turn will complement the Moore Street Mall."
However, traders in nearby Moore Street, a traditional place for buying fruit and vegetables, say Irish customers no longer visit the street and would rather shop at the more high-end farmer's market in Temple Bar.
Moore Street trader Tom Holbrook said recently: "It's sad that Dubliners don't shop here any more. All my customers come from Africa, Asia and eastern Europe".
Other recent developments in Ireland have included Belgard Square in Tallaght, with 18 retail units. Shelbourne Development sees the scheme becoming a landmark retail hub offering an all-inclusive shopping experience.
It does intend to promote similar shopping centres elsewhere in the Republic. Tom Hamilton is Shelbourne Development's director of development; he joined the company from DTZ Sherry FitzGerald in 1998.
He comments: "We have plans for a number of very exciting retail schemes in the pipeline. Details of these will be announced as we apply for planning permission for each scheme."
With these planned centres, as with all the other developments masterminded by Kelleher's group, the emphasis will be very much on an holistic approach, similar to that of Chartered Land.
All the projects that Shelbourne Development is planning in Ireland, including retail, will total close to 400,000 sq m. They are due to roll out over the next five to seven years.
However, Shelbourne Development does tend to be cagey about media coverage and Kelleher himself is notoriously media shy, refusing to give media interviews under any circumstances. He is also rarely seen in public. But he is renowned for generating better than average returns from his investments.
Kelleher's also rarely seen in a suit, preferring open-necked shirts. He is deeply religious, very committed to his Catholic faith; in this respect, he is similar to another well-known Dublin property developer, Noel Smyth. Kelleher is also devoted to liturgical music.
Eight years ago, Kelleher paid €6.73m for his seven-bedroom house in the exclusive Herbert Park in south Dublin, twice the original guide price. He and his wife Maeve have six children.
He also has a keen interest in soccer and last year acquired St Patrick's Athletic Football Club in Inchicore, Dublin, making himself chairman in the process. He has long-term ambitions to make the club into a strong force in European football.
Kelleher is regarded as a shrewd and tough negotiator, as well as a bold decision maker. He is also described as a likeable guy and a straight guy, though sometimes impatient with Dublin's cosy business methods.
He also crossed swords with the formidable Treasury Holdings team over the Moore Street Mall development, but in the end, won An Bord Pleanála approval for the scheme. This is one of a number of clashes that Kelleher and Shelbourne Development have had with the combative Treasury Holdings in recent years.
He may be one of Dublin's less flamboyant property developers, but he has certainly made his mark with a remarkably successful and profitable track record.
Leaving aside his current obsession, the Chicago Spire, the next few years could see Garrett Kelleher take serious interest in more retail centre development here in Ireland.
