28th April (Issue 244)
Welcome to the Origin Capital Weekly Irish Property Review. This update is designed to provide you with a full recap of the latest property news from the media over the last seven days.
RESIDENTIAL / LAND
Dundrum, Dublin 14 The Land Development Agency (LDA), set up in 2018 to use State property for housing, plans to build more than 1,200 dwellings on the Central Mental Hospital site in Dundrum, Dublin. The Irish Times understands that subject to An Bord Pleanála approval, the agency hopes to begin building there in early 2022. In general, the agency earmarks about 30% – 40% of the properties in its developments for social and affordable housing. It will work out the final mix between private and social and affordable homes at Dundrum as the project is designed. The Irish Times, 23rd April
Cornelscourt, South Dublin An Bord Pleanála has ruled against approving plans for a 452-apartment build-to-rent complex on land formerly owned by Dunnes Stores at Cornelscourt in south Dublin. The plans included 8 apartment blocks, one of which was rising to 12 storeys. It said the level of communal open space is below the minimum standard set out in ministerial guidelines. The number of single-aspect apartments – apartments with windows on one wall only – also contravened the guidelines, it said. The Irish Times, 22nd April
OFFICE
Kevin St, Dublin 2 GLL Real Estate Partners, an affiliate of the Australian investment bank Macquarie Group and Patrizia AG, has completed the acquisition of the Bishop’s Square office scheme in Dublin city centre for €182 million. The current rental income is €7.881 million with nearly 90% of this being generated by the OPW and Tourism Ireland. Other tenants include Starbucks and International Financial Data Services (IFDS). Located on Kevin Street and within a short walk of St Stephen’s Green, Bishop’s Square is a grade-A office building. The property’s overall floor area is 182,774 sq.ft. over seven storeys (€996 purchase price psf). The Irish Times, 22nd April
Dublin 8 Henley Bartra has sold Phoenix House in Dublin 8 to private Irish investors for €16 million. Phoenix House extends to 37,234 sq.ft. (€430 psf) and has the benefit of 61 car spaces. Henley Bartra had paid €8.5 million to purchase the building from Ryanair in 2018. At the time of its purchase, three of the property’s five floors were vacant while the remaining floors were let to the Office of Public Works (OPW) at a passing rent of €365,000. The Irish Times understands that Henley Bartra invested several million euro on a comprehensive refurbishment and upgrade of the building, before letting all three vacant floors to the OPW under a new 10-year lease at a rent of €647,075 per annum, bringing the total annual income to €1.012 million (€27.18 psf). The Irish Times, 22nd April
Harcourt St, Dublin 2 Hibernia Reit has received approval from Dublin City Council for an enlarged office scheme at the current Dublin regional Garda headquarters on Harcourt Street. Designed by Henry J Lyons architects, the scheme will deliver 343,000 sq.ft. of office accommodation on the 1.9 acre city centre site, an increase of 28,000 sq.ft, over the previously approved plans for a 315,000 sq.ft. scheme. It incorporates the adjoining buildings at 39 and 40 Harcourt Street, the former being a Georgian townhouse built in 1800, which will be carefully restored as part of the project. The development is expected to be completed in 2025. Construction is expected to commence in January 2023, after the Garda staff based on the premises move to the new €80 million Garda command and control centre on Military Road near Heuston Station. The Irish Times, 24th April
Leeson St Lower, Dublin 2 QRE Real Estate Advisers is guiding €2.3 million for a fully let investment property at No 43 Leeson St Lower. The property which underwent refurbishment in 2009, comprises a four-storey over-basement terraced Georgian building, which extends to c.3,955 sq.ft. in total (€582 psf). The building is in educational use and let in its entirety to Champlain College Dublin on a 20-year lease from 2008 at a passing rent of €90,000 per annum by way of side letter dated 2012 (€22.76 psf). There is an outstanding rent review dated August 2018. The Irish Times, 22nd April
RETAIL
Dublin 1 Four Dublin retail units sold at auction in one lot for €1.042 million which was €192,000 or 23% over BidX1’s guide price. The units are located in the Quartiere Bloom, Lower Ormond Quay, Dublin 1. For the auction, BidX1 increased the guide price to €850,000 following the departure of tenants from two of the units. The four premises sold have floor areas totalling 2,156 sq.ft (€483 psf). Two of the units are occupied by a hair dressing salon and a coffee shop. Together these two generate combined annual rents of €30,135 including VAT. The two now vacant units had been rented at €32,424 including VAT and were occupied by fashion boutiques. Irish Independent, 25th April
INDUSTRIAL
Dublin 15 Dunnes Store has agreed to rent 325,000 sq.ft. of space at Damastown Business Park in Mulhuddart, Dublin 15. Iput, who own the property facilitated a lease assignment from global logistics specialist, Geodis, to the retailer. Dunnes Stores will now occupy the unit on a 20-year lease. The agreement represents the largest logistics leasing deal in Dublin since 2010. Iput acquired the Damastown unit for €36 million in 2014. At the time of the sale, Geodis was paying a rent of €2.5 million per annum for the premises and had more than 12 years remaining on its lease with no break options. The Irish Times, 22nd April
Drogheda, Co Louth Lisney is offering to lease a recently completed industrial building of c.64,487 sq.ft. for €575,000 per annum (€8.92 psf). The building is located within Donore Industrial Estate in Drogheda and has frontage on to both the Donore Road and Matthews Lane South. Donore Road is a well-established commercial hub with easy access to the M1 motorway and with 40km of the Dublin Port Tunnel. The building itself is situated on a site of 3.45 acres. The Sunday Business Post, 26th April
Q1 2020 Dublin Industrial Market 963,640 sq.ft. of industrial space transacted in Q1, 17% behind the 1.19 million sq.ft. that was taken during the same quarter last year. However, this still represents a strong start to the year, sitting above the three-year quarterly average of 807,293 sq.ft. Knight Frank Report, Q1 2020
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