Permission granted for Fitzwilton House scheme in Dublin

Irish property fund Iput plc has received planning permission from An Bord Pleanála for the €45 million redevelopment of Fitzwilton House on the Grand Canal in Dublin.

The permission was granted on Tuesday, subject to 15 conditions. An Bord Pleanála said the proposed development would be “compatible” with the Dublin City Development Plan 2011-2017 and would not “adversely or materially impact” on the character of the area.

Iput plans to demolish the existing 1960s building and construct a new 17,405sq m office development, ranging from four to eight storeys.

Materials and bicycles

The building, designed by Henry J Lyons Architects, will include 44 car and 178 bicycle parking spaces and a roof garden overlooking the canal and Wilton Terrace. Construction is due to start in 2017 and be complete by mid-2019.

Under the conditions , the materials, colours and textures of all the external finishes are to be agreed with the planning authority.

Provision must also be made for cycle access from Wilton Terrace onto Lad Lane Upper and a “landscape masterplan” for five years from the completion of the development.

In addition, the developer must lodge a cash deposit with the planning authority or other security for services connected with the development, and make a financial contribution for public infrastructure that benefits the scheme.

In its application, Iput said the carbon impact of the building was calculated at less than half that of the refurbishment option per person served.

Fund value of €1.95bn

Latest results for Iput show that the fund was valued at €1.95 billion at September 30th, up 2.8 per cent on the previous quarter as capital growth “continues to moderate”.

The fund returned €20.8 million to shareholders in the quarter (€61.1 million in the year to date) reflecting a 12-month dividend yield of 4.3 per cent.

In the first nine months of the year, Iput had acquired, or agreed to acquire, almost €150 million of assets across eight individual properties.

Iput collected rent of €65.6 million in the first nine months of the year. This represented a rent recovery rate of 99.9 per cent.