OfficeMarket:Property developers Bernard McNamara and Gerry O'Reilly will this week have the option of acquiring the lease of an office block in Ballsbridge, Dublin 4, which they bought last January for €46 million.

The lease is being put on the market by the state agency Forfás which was originally based in Carrisbrook House, across the road from the former Jurys Hotel.

The agency moved out several years ago and sub let the eight-storey block to AIB and the State of Israel.

The block was bought by the McNamara/O'Reilly consortium - it frequently includes property adviser David Courtney - with the intention of redeveloping the site and an adjoining petrol filling station.

The group also has an interest in the area beside the former Jurys Hotel after paying €35.9 million for the State-owned Faculty Building on Shelbourne Road.

Separately, Bernard McNamara has quietly assembled a highly valuable redevelopment site directly opposite the former Jurys Hotel on Pembroke Road.

Forfás is likely to be seeking in the region of €250,000 for its leasehold interest in Carrisbrook House which is to be sold at tender on November 16th.

Robert McGreal of agent McNally Handy is conscious that the owning consortium may be interested in buying in the lease but says it could also be of interest to someone looking for a corporate headquarters or "someone interested in speculating on the development prospects of the area".

The block is producing a rent of €1.18 million which includes car parking.

Most of the rent roll is paid by AIB and, despite efforts by it to assign the sub-leases to another occupier, there have been no takers because of the tired condition of the building internally and the fact that the three subleases have another 26 years to run.