Paddy McKillen jnr seeking €36m for south Dublin residential site

Having failed in the weeks leading up to the arrival of the Covid-19 pandemic to find a buyer at €45 million for a prime residential site it owns at Blackrock in South Dublin, developer Paddy McKillen jnr and Matt Ryan’s Oakmount has instructed joint agents Knight Frank and Savills to offer the property to the market once more at a reduced guide price of €36 million.

Located on lands formerly owned by the Daughters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul, the 9.86-acre holding at Temple Hill comes for sale with full planning permission secured in 2019 from An Bord Pleanála for the development of 291 one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments. 284 of the units will be distributed across 13 blocks ranging in height from one to eight storeys, while a further six units will be accommodated within the existing protected structure of St Teresa’s House following its subdivision and conversion. The plan would also see the dismantling and relocation to another area within the site of another protected structure, St Teresa’s Lodge. The lodge is to be converted into one one-bedroom apartment under the approval given in 2019 under the terms of the Government’s temporary Strategic Housing Development (SHD) scheme, or “fast-track” planning process.

The overall residential scheme is to be complemented by the inclusion of a new creche facility, a residents’ clubhouse and a woodland park area. The development will also provide parking spaces for 272 cars, 666 bicycles and 20 motorcycles.

Located less than 500 metres southeast of Blackrock village and with 250 metres of frontage on to Temple Road, the subject site could potentially come to accommodate up to 446 units. In 2022, Oakmount sought and secured planning permission for this number along with a creche, residential amenity building and a cafe. While this particular permission is the subject of judicial review proceedings, the joint selling agents believe it is indicative of an acceptance from both Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council and An Bord Pleanála, that the site can cater for additional density. To this end, the project design team, which includes planning consultants Brock McClure, have prepared a feasibility study that highlights the ability of a prospective purchaser to use the original 2019 planning permission to start with the construction of 162 units across six blocks. While doing so, the purchaser could then seek to amend this SHD approval under the terms of the latest large-scale residential development (LRD) legislation to increase the number of units on the site to 446.

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Oakmount acquired the Temple Hill site for €30 million in 2017. The price paid by the company represented a premium of 20 per cent on the €25 million guided by WK Nowlan Real Estate Advisors when it brought the lands to the market on behalf of the Daughters of Charity of St Vincent de Paul.

Although Oakmount had been the second-highest bidder at the outset of the sales process, it prevailed when the lead bidder was unable to complete on its offer of €31 million. While a sale of the lands for €36 million would suggest that Oakmount would be in line for a significant uplift on its original investment, any potential profit is likely to be reduced by the developer’s cost of financing the site’s acquisition and on the planning process.

Commenting on its decision to sell the Temple Hill lands, a spokesperson for Oakmount said: “Our strategy for this prime property has always been to deliver planning on this unrivalled residential site to allow for the delivery of what will be one of the finest apartment schemes in Dublin. We are delighted to now recommence the sale process following the delays caused by Covid.”

Quite apart from its most recent association with the Daughters of Charity, the Temple Hill property has a storied history. The Victorian residence now known as St Teresa’s House was once the home of Lady Arnott, the wife of John Arnott who owned the department store bearing the Arnott name.

The site is well served by public transport thanks to its immediate proximity to the Temple Road QBC (quality bus corridor), and the location of both Blackrock and Seapoint Dart stations nearby. Blackrock is 7km to the southeast of Dublin city centre and is widely regarded as one of the capital’s most sought-after and affluent residential locations. The seaside village is home to popular restaurants, bars and shops while more extensive shopping facilities are provided at the nearby Frascati and Blackrock shopping centres.

The area offers a number of highly-regarded schools at both primary and secondary levels, including Guardian Angels, Carysfort, Scoil Lorcáin and Willow Park national schools, Blackrock College, St Andrew’s, Newpark Comprehensive, Sion Hill, CBC Monkstown and Rockford Manor Secondary Schools. At third level, both the UCD Michael Smurfit Business Graduate School at Carysfort Avenue, Blackrock and UCD Belfield are within easy reach of the Temple Road site.

Knight Frank and Savills commented: “There is both a significant dearth and unprecedented demand for quality high-density residential sites of this scale in accessible locations. This represents one of the finest residential development opportunities to come to the Dublin market in recent times and will be highly sought-after by a mixture of both domestic and international purchasers.”

Further information on the sake is available from James Meagher at Knight Frank and from John Swarbrigg at Savills while a dedicated property website/data room can be accessed via www.templeroadblackrock.com