Gecko Towers
Maybe its a national character trait that has spread the World over but the Irish make the very best of their national celebrations. One of the events that kicks off the Marbella spring social calendar is the March 17th commemoration of St Patrick’s demise. Our Irish neighbours, already a sizable community, are enthusiastically joined by local Spaniards, other EU nationals and Brits alike to enjoy the festival.
Its not entirely surprising that the Celtic Tiger of a previous era brought with it other pieces of home. A great example is “Dunnes Stores” a clothes and homeware chain-store founded in 1944 in Saint Patrick’s Street in Dublin and still owned 100% by the Dunne family. There are currently four Dunnes Store in Spain, three in and around Fuengirola. The first was opened in 1980.
This stalwart of the Irish and Costa del Sol retail scene was joined in La Canada (Marbella) in August 2021 by the arrival of a double story Primark. Known as Penneys in the Republic of Ireland, it was founded in 1969 by Arthur Ryan with the support of Selfridges’ owners and Ireland’s richest family, the Westons. It already boasts two other outlets in the immediate vicinity.
Two giants of the European retail world firmly ensconced in the Costa del Sol market serving an international clientele but Irish at heart.
If you ask an Brit, who is keen to buy on Spain’s Costa del Sol, where their current envy lies they will usually say not being an EU citizen is a serious beef . Their EU neighbors, including their fellow Irish anglophones, continue to enjoy a complete Freedom of Movement denied to them as a result of Brexit.
The nature of Freedom of Movement is what it says, a complete and unquestioning liberty to decide where you want to live. Any one of the EU member states holds a warm welcome for as long as you’d like, subject, in Spain’s case, to an overall 183 day limit to prevent becoming a Spanish tax resident, unless that’s something you want to do.
Drawn by Marbella’s unique environment, the International Schooling and the extraordinarily high level of Spanish infrastructure its compelling for our Irish friends. However, in my experience of working with Irish clients, many cite a powerful connection to the Green as their driver. No, not the green grass of home, but the green of the many wonderful golf courses that pepper the Costa del Sol from Torre Del Mar (Malaga) to Sotogrande – which founded in 1964 by entrepreneurial couple Joseph and Mercedes McMicking.
The draw of the Costa del Sol to our Celtic neighbors has been long standing since golf arrived in the 1920’s with Queen Victoria’s daughter and King Felipe’s great Grandmother, Beatriz de Battenburg, who designed a 9 hole course on the site of the Parador del Golf near Malaga’s airport.
A friend runs a golf-based sport and property business in the Marbella region and has a deep knowledge of the majority of the Costa’s over 70 courses – the largest concentration of golf courses in Europe. He was recently hosting a golf tour of several of the major courses in Southern Ireland and his comment was that they were simply beautiful courses but the weather ranged from “soft” to full on “gale”!
Stemming from the a domestic enthusiasm for the game – where it is considered “the game of the people” – the formal history of golf in Eire stretches over 160 years from the foundation of Kildare’s “Royal Curragh Golf Club”. The sport in Ireland now numbers over 300 different courses including the iconic 1991 founded and Michael Smurfit owned “The K Club”. It has a total player base (Ladies and Gents) of circa 200,000 and this doesn’t include those who are not club members but “pay as they play” – pretty much all courses in Ireland are open to visitors. Not bad for a country with a population of under 5m.
Naturally, this affinity for the Green has resulted in the sparkling careers for many of current crop of Irish golfing greats including Padraig Harrington, Darren Clarke, Rory McIIroy, Leona Maguire, Stephanie Meadow and Shane Lowry.
Marbella’s tally is 21 courses and, as a result, bears the name “Costa del Golf”. The heart of Golf Valley in Nueva Andalucía continues to be a big draw for the Emerald Isles’ golfing community. So much so that I understand, from those in the local property market, that Celtic investment, that along with much else collapsed in 2008, is now recovering in leaps and bounds. I now understanding that the Irish are returning in impressive numbers and to them we extend a very warm welcome.
Should you be interested in discussing the legal process involved in buying a property in the Marbella region, we would be delighted to assist you. Our team of bi-lingual, highly experienced and wholly independent Abogados are ready to help you.
Please call me, Mark FR Wilkins, during usual business hours on +34 600 343 917 or, if you prefer, or e-mail me at mark@roslegal.es
Please note that our posts are for general interest. They is no substitute for proper legal advice tailored to your specific circumstances as provided by a qualified Abogado who is experienced in the application of the Spanish Law.
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© Mark FR Wilkins 2021. All rights reserved.