The centre was built on a 12,000 m2 former hospital site, which was bought in 1994 at a cost of £5.97 million. The centre was built at a cost of £76 million. Most of the facade of the former Hospital has been retained and incorporated into the Shopping Centre. The Jervis Shopping Centre opened in 1996 and extends to 37,000 m2. The centre was originally anchored by Debenhams, M and S and Tesco, and boasts 750 Car Parking spaces. The property is strategically located on Mary /Henry Street, one of Irelands busiest high streets. Since 1996 Jervis Shopping Centre has established itself as Dublin's most successful and vibrant shopping environment. Although its main entrance is on Mary Street, the centre is named for the Jervis Street Hospital on whose site it was built following the hospital's closure in the late 1980s. The existing Marks and Spencer store on Mary Street was incorporated into the new centre, with the other anchor tenants being Quinnsworth and New Look in the unit formerly occupied by Debenhams. The centre is notable in that, as the first major shopping centre opened during the economic boom of the late 1990s, it marked the first appearance of many British 'high street' retailers in the Republic of Ireland. These included Boots, Dixons, Debenhams, Next, and Argos among others, which have gone on to become major names in the main streets of Ireland. This contrasted with existing Irish shopping centres at the time which were usually anchored by local names such as Dunnes, Roches Stores, and Penneys. Not all of the new arrivals were successes: British Home Stores opened a store in 1996 having previously sold all of its Irish interests to Primark; however, the outlet was not a success and was later sold to Heatons. The centre was one of the first to introduce the food court concept to Ireland, with outlets including KFC, Spud U Like, and Harry Ramsden's. Other major restaurants in the centre include Burger King. The Centre is owned by Paddy McKillen, Padraig Drayne and Paschal Taggart. The success of the centre also led to its rival, the 1980s-built Ilac Shopping Centre giving its appearance a complete modernisation. This was completed in mid-2008.
Public transport
The shopping centre is on the Luas Red line, with the Jervis stop right outside.
