In Short

A roundup of the week's other commercial property news in brief

€460 per sq m rent in D8

A newly upgraded and enlarged office block at the junction of Camden Street and Grantham Street in Dublin 2/8 has come on the letting market through Paul Finucane of Colliers Jackson-Stops. The well located block owned by Markland Holdings has a net floor space of 658sq m (7,083sq ft) over three floors, including a penthouse floor with a private balcony offering spectacular views over the city centre. The building, which is available in units from 168sq m (1,808sq ft) at a rent of €460 per sq m (€42.75 per sq ft), has been fitted out to a high standard and includes air conditioning. The ground floor is occupied by Lomac Tiles. The building is within a three-minute walk of the Luas station at Harcourt Street.

Carl Scarpa for Blanchardstown

Ladies footwear retailer Carl Scarpa is to open a new branch at the Blanchardstown Centre in west Dublin. The company will be paying a rent of around €250,000 for the new store which will extend to 140sq m (1,507sq ft) and on level two next to Warehouse and HM, and opposite Zara and Debenhams department store.

Carl Scarpa has been waiting over two years to find a suitable shop in the Blanchardstown Centre which has relatively little turnover of tenants.

The new store will bring to 14 the number of stores operated by Carla Scarpa. Its flagship outlet is on Dublin's Grafton Street. The letting agents were HWBC and Jones Lang LaSalle.

Jack Wills for Wicklow Street

Jones Lang LaSalle has contracted the high-end UK ladies and gents fashion retailer Jack Wills to take a new 233sq m (2,508sq ft) store on Wicklow Street subject to planning permission from An Bord Pleanála. Dan Peake of Savills advised Jack Wills in the acquisition of its second store in Ireland following the recent opening of a unit in the Kildare Village Outlet. The opportunity to trade from a medium-sized unit just off Grafton Street is being created through the redevelopment of the ground floor and basement of 34/35 Wicklow Street. A decision is expected before the end of 2008 from An Bord Pleanála for the amalgamation of the two retail units, allowing Jack Wills to trade from 119sq m (1,281sq ft) at ground and 114sq m (1,227sq ft) at basement level.

Grafton St in top five dear list

There is a wide perception that rents on Dublin's Grafton Street are over the top, and Lisney's international partners Cushman Wakefield reported this week that the high street has jumped two places to enter the world's top five most expensive streets. Retailers entering the street can now expect to pay €5,621 per sq m (€522 per sq ft), a rise of 5.3 per cent on 2007.

New York's Fifth Avenue is once again the most expensive street where retailers can pay rents of €12,612 per sq m (€1,172 per sq ft), an increase of 23 per cent. Next comes Hong Kong, Paris, Milan and then Dublin. Hugh Markey of Lisney said the high availability of shops bears witness to the effect of the rise in rents on Grafton Street. Premiums have tumbled with the decline in consumer spending and opportunities exist to locate on the street for virtually no premium, something unheard of in recent years.

€70,000 premium in Ranelagh

CB Richard Ellis is seeking a premium of €70,000 for the lease of the Xerox printing and photocopying centre in Ranelagh village, Dublin 6. The two-storey building has a floor area of 157sq m (1,690sq ft), including 87sq m (936sq ft) on the ground floor. The rent is €75,000. There is surface car-parking in front of the building.

CBRE is also seeking a tenant for a newly built three-storey over basement building at 7 Sandymount Green, Dublin 6. The rent will be €135,000 per annum. The retail element has full planning permission for a deli/coffee shop which has a floor area of 158sq m (1,701sq ft) at ground floor level and another 103sq m (1,109sq ft) in the basement.

€278.6m deal in London

JP MorganNew hotel to open in D4 has lifted spirits in London's docklands after announcing a £237 million (€278.6 million) deal with Canary Wharf Group to develop a UK head office in the district. The US investment bank has bought a 999-year leasehold on a development called Riverside South but would not specify the size of the building it will occupy. Infrastructure work at the site has already begun and the bank has planning permission for up to 176,516sq m (1.9 million sq ft), almost 10 per cent of the docklands financial district. The building, likely to be completed in four to five years, is a rare piece of good news for London's business office sector in a time of financial slowdown and contraction in the banking industry.

New hotel to open in D4

The former Sachs Hotel at Morehampton Road in Donnybrook, Dublin 4, has been redeveloped and will open before Christmas as the Hampton Hotel. It will have 24 bedrooms and suites in a contemporary setting featuring high quality design and immense comfort. There will be a bar, bistro and meeting rooms. The hotel is currently recruiting up to 30 staff.