THE SITE THAT’S due to house Dublin’s tallest office block has been bought by a European property investment fund.
The future Exo development – a 17-storey structure that’s expected to be built beside the 3Arena in Dublin’s North Docklands – was acquired by a vehicle known as the European Property Investors Special Opportunities IV.
The financial details of the acquisition have not been disclosed, but the sale was completed in December of last year with SW3, the investment fund’s local partner.
The sale was agreed with Nama-appointed joint receivers Stephen Tennant and Paul McCann of accountancy giant Grant Thornton.
Construction is due to begin by the end of the month with Bennett Construction has been appointed as the main contractor for the 170,000 sq ft development. It’s hoped the building will be completed by the end of March 2020.
Once completed, the Exo building will become Dublin’s tallest office block. Celtic Tiger developer Johnny Ronan was planning a larger development on Tara Street that would have surpassed it by five storeys, but that project has been bogged down in the planning process.
It was previously stated the Exo building will cost around €80 million to complete. Property companies Savills and CBRE have been tasked with securing pre-let agreements with tenants that will occupy the space, which will be able to house up to 2,000 workers.
In addition to 360-degree views of Dublin city from inside the building, the block – designed by architecture firm Shay Cleary Architects – will also feature a panoramic rooftop garden.
Stephen Tennant, one of the joint receivers from Grant Thornton, said once completed the Exo building will become “a pivotal landmark for the Point Square”.
Planning permission for the office building was approved in March 2016 under fast-track planning rules. The application to Dublin City Council and An Bord Pleanála was funded by Nama.
The building is located on the site of what was meant to be Ireland’s tallest building, Harry Crosbie’s 120-metre ‘Watchtower’, which was due to be the centrepiece of the developer’s Point Village complex.
As previously explained by Fora, the original building was consigned to the scrapheap after Crosbie’s loans were transferred to Nama and the state bad-bank appointed receivers to the Point Village.
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Written by Conor McMahon and posted on Fora.ie
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