Australian bank's D4 move

THE Australian bank, Macquarie, is moving its Dublin office to new accommodation at Connaught House on Burlington Road in Dublin 4.

The bank had previously decided to take space in Burlington Plaza 2 on the same road but that option was no longer available when Bank of Ireland agreed to rent the entire block of 6,967sq m (75,000sq ft) after it moves its remaining staff out of the former head office on Baggot Street.

Macquarie is understoood to have agreed a rent of €349 per sq m (€32.50 per sq ft) for around 836sq m (9,000sq ft) on the first floor of Connaught House, which is owned by developer John Ronan.

The bank has break options in years five and 10, even though Ronan originally refused to make such concessions to interested tenants when the block was completed more than five years ago.

Other tenants in the building include Treasury Holdings, which is controlled by Ronan and Richard Barrett, Anglo Irish Bank,estate agent CB Richard Ellis and Premier Recruitment.

The joint letting agents were HT Meagher O’Reilly and CB Richard Ellis. DTZ Sherry FitzGerald advised Maquarie.

Meanwhile, CBRE is reporting “strong interest” in a second block beside the new Bank of Ireland building. Plaza 2 has a floor area of 15,328sq m (165,000sq ft) and is available at a rent of €376 per sq m (€35 per sq ft).

It was developed by AIB Investment Managers and investors Paddy Kelly and John Flynn.