Revenue to take up space at new Dunnes Stores HQ

The Revenue will be paying a rent of €376 per sq m (€35 per sq ft) for the new offices on South Great George's Street it will share with Dunnes Stores, writes Jack Fagan

Dunnes Stores, which recently figured in the report of the Moriarty Tribunal over a tax bill, is shortly to share its new head office in Dublin's South Great George's Street with the Revenue Commissioners.

The tribunal found that former taoiseach Charles Haughey asked the former chairman of the Revenue Commissioners, Seamus Paircéir, to meet Ben Dunne, the then head of Dunnes Stores, and the two men entered into negotiations during which the Revenue chairman offered to settle a £38.8 million tax bill for £16 million. The offer was not taken up by the supermarket group.

The Revenue has just completed contracts to rent 4,645sq m (50,000sq ft) in the newly completed office building over a row of shops along South Great George's Street, including a large home furnishing store operated by Dunnes. The offices extend around the corner into Stephen Street and space to be occupied by the Revenue will overlook Dublin Castle at the rear. The Revenue will be paying a rent of €376 per sq m (€35 per sq ft) and the 20-year lease will provide for break options in years 10 and 15. It will also have the use of over 30 parking spaces at an annual rent of €3,500.

A further 9,290sq m (100,000sq ft) in the new building is to be used as a headquarters by Dunnes Stores when it relocates from Beaux Lane House around the corner in Lower Mercer Street. It had intended to move its HQ to Blanchardstown but abandoned the plan after Dublin City Council put pressure on it to proceed with the redevelopment of South Great George's Street where it had assembled a substantial site over many years. Dunnes eventually sold the 10-storey office block in Blanchardstown to Quinn Direct for around €30 million.

The Revenue's office deal with Dunnes Stores means that its staff will only be moving a few hundred yards from its offices in Castle House and Wicklow House at the bottom of South Great George's Street. Once its lengthy lease of those buildings ran out, the Revenue looked for alternative space close to its offices in Dublin Castle. The new block completed by Dunnes proved an ideal alternative and staff are due to move in the coming weeks.

The owners of Castle House and Wicklow House, Chartered Properties, in which the McCanns of Fyffes are investors, plan to embark on a €60 million redevelopment of the buildings which include 15 shops. When completed it will have a new frontage and 13,935sq m (150,000sq ft) of offices. The Revenue was advised by Finnegan Menton while Dunnes Stores was represented by Druker Fanning and Jones Lang LaSalle.