Polonia pays €42m for Budapest offices

The Irish syndicated fund, Polonia, has paid €42 million for the East-West Business Centre, a top class office building in Budapest. The sale was handled by Lisney's international associates, Cushman & Wakefield Healey & Baker. It is the second office acquisition in Hungary for Polonia, which focuses on central European property investments.

Completed in 1991, the business centre was Budapest's first modern class A building and the first development in the region by the Swedish developer Skanska. The tenants include Accenture, British Airways, KLM, AIG, Reuters, Hitachi and EOn.

Ryde Developments pays €10m for docklands scheme

Roy Strudwick's Ryde Developments, almost forgotten since it completed The Sweepstakes office scheme in Ballsbridge, Dublin 4, several years ago, has reappeared on the scene with its purchase of a small development site at Grand Canal Dock in the Dublin docklands.

Mr Strudwick, who owns a stud farm in Co Kilkenny, has paid the Dublin Docklands Development Authority (DDDA) around €10 million for a site of 0.65 of an acre which will be used for a mixed office and retail scheme. The seven-storey building will have 9,775 sq m (105,217 sq ft) of offices and 1,950 sq m (20,989 sq ft) with a dual frontage on to the dock and piazza. It will adjoin Gallery Quay, an apartment scheme now well advanced.

Mr Strudwick retained one of the three office blocks he built at the Sweepstakes and the 5,574 sq m (59,997 sq ft) building is multi-let to companies such as Regus, Barlo, Global Crossing and Merrion Capital.

Restored Georgian on Leeson Street to make over €3m

A vacant Georgian office building restored about eight years ago at 32 Lower Leeson Street, Dublin 2, is expected to make over €3 million when it is auctioned on April 29th by Colliers Jackson Stops. It has a floor area of 328.34 sq m ???(3,434 sq ft). A strong selling point is that the property also includes two cut-stone mews buildings at the rear along with 10 car-parking spaces.

The same agents are to sell or let office suites at Heather House, a five-storey office building with 3,502 sq m (37,695 sq ft) at Sandyford Industrial Estate. Office units of around 150 sq m (1,614 sq ft) are likely to be available for sale at around €4,000 per sq m (€371 per sq ft) or at a rent of €240 per sq m (€22 per sq ft). Another 710 sq m (7,642 sq ft) of floor space has been let to the fit-out designers and contractors, The Plan Group, at a rent of about €195 per sq m (€18 per sq ft).

Dunnes convenience store for Ongar Retail Village in Meath

Dunnes Stores continues to roll out its new style convenience stores with the decision to acquire a unit of 1,750 sq m (18,836 sq ft) at Ongar Retail Village near Clonee, Co Meath. Manor Park Homes is developing most of the homes near the retail centre and the expectation is that there will be about 10,000 new units in the area. Hamilton Osborne King handled the letting and Druker Fanning and Partners advised Dunnes Stores.

Office on Navan's main street for over €650,000

It is seldom enough that a shop on Navan's principal throughfare, Trimgate Street, goes for sale so there should be considerable interest in the former First Active office which has come on the market through DTZ Sherry FitzGerald. Offers over €650,000 are being sought for the two-storey mid-terrace premises which has 76 sq m (818 sq ft) at street level and 42 sq m (452 sq ft) overhead. It is located along one of the busiest stretches, directly opposite the Kennedy Road which leads to the local shopping centre.

Molton Brown to open in Cork, Limerick and Galway

International cosmetics retailer Molton Brown is now expected to open new outlets in Cork, Limerick and Galway following its successful Irish launch at the Brown Thomas store in Dublin. The company, which is represented by Hugh Markey of Lisney, has also decided to open a store at the Dundrum Town Centre.

Federal Express Europe to lease warehouse beside airport

Federal Express Europe is to lease a vacant warehouse building owned by Irish Life at Airways Industrial Estate beside Dublin Airport. The multi-national company will be paying a rent of €210,000 per annum (the equivalent of €96.77 per sq m/€9 per sq ft) for the warehouse which has a floor area of 2,170 sq m (23,357 sq ft). Ernan Coughlan of Irish Estates acted for Irish Life and Michael O'Donohue of Colliers Jackson Stops advised the tenant.

Chartered surveyors go west

At the launch of a new western region group of the Society of Chartered Surveyors in Galway are , from left, founder member Padraic Murray of Peter F Costello & partners, Joe Bannnon, president of the SCS and Pierce O'Reilly of Mulcahy McDonagh & Partners