A round-up of today's other stories in brief

Corner retail building in D2 makes €17m

The investment group D2, controlled by David Arnold and Deirdre Foley, has paid €17 million for the Graham O'Sullivan retail building at the junction of Dawson Street and Duke Street in Dublin 2.

The high profile building has 151sq m (1,625sq ft) of space on the ground floor, which includes 11 and 12 Duke Street, and a similar volume of space on the first, second and third floors. There is also accommodation in the basement. The building will be available for letting from the middle of December through Hamilton Osborne King and HT Meagher O'Reilly.

Timberland pays €175,000 for lease of shop off Grafton Street

Fashion specialists Timberland is to open a new store at South Anne Street, off Dublin's Grafton Street, where it has paid €175,000 for the lease held by Envy.

The Cork-based Timberland franchisee will be paying a rent of €115,000 but a rent review shortly could send that figure close to €200,000. The building has a floor area of 537sq m (5,780sq ft) and a ground floor area of 165sq m (1,776sq ft). Timberland also has stores in Limerick city and Dundrum Town Centre.

Karl Stewart of DTZ Sherry FitzGerald advised Envy which also trades on Henry Street and is part of the Alexon group in the UK.

Over €900,000 for retail investment at Mespil Road

Lisney is suggesting offers over €900,000 for a well-located retail investment at 67 Mespil Road, Dublin 4, which has excellent reversionary potential. Investment properties such as this one have been difficult to source in recent years.

The ground floor, trading as The Flower Box, has been tastefully restored to complement the style of the original building which has a total floor area of 105.26sq m (1,133sq ft). The current rent of €13,000 is due to be reviewed in March 2008. The first floor and basement are currently vacant and in need of refurbishment. There is also a small garden to the rear. The building overlooks the Grand Canal and is adjacent to Baggot Baggot Street Bridge in the heart of a busy business district. Lisney is inviting best and final offers by November 28th.

TK Maxx and Virgin sign up for space at Arklow centre

Leading traders TK Maxx and Virgin have signed up to trade in the planned Bridgewater Centre in Arklow which is due to open for business in the autumn of 2007.

TK Maxx will trade out of a store of 2,601sq m (27,997sq ft) while Virgin will be renting 743sq m (8,000sq ft).

The decision by both traders to open in Arklow was described yesterday as "spectacular additions to the centre" by Declan Stone of agents Colliers Jackson-Stops. Even before a marketing campaign gets under way, the promoters have already let 75 per cent of the 32,515sq m (350,000sq ft) in the centre.

Anchored by a 6,688sq m (72,000sq ft) Dunnes Stores unit, the centre will have a good mix of retail units, a six-screen cinema, restaurants and apartments overlooking the waterfront. Colliers Jackson-Stops and joint agents Bannon Commercial are quoting rents of €645 per sq m (€60 per sq ft) for retail units.

Aldi buys ready-to-go retail site in Portlaoise for €19 million

Solicitor and developer Noel Smyth has secured €19 million for a ready-to-go retail site of 2 hectares (4.95 acres) near the centre of Portlaoise. It was bought by German discounter Aldi.

Since acquiring the former Tretorne factory premises on Kylekiproe Road over a year ago from another developer, Smyth has secured planning permission for a retail scheme of 11,200sq m (120,000sq ft), including an anchor unit of 2,429sq m (26,145sq ft), eight mall units at ground and mezzanine level, and 419 car-parking spaces.

The sale was handled by Robert McNamara of Bannon Commercial.

Georgian investment on Lower Baggot Street makes €1.985m

A private investor has paid €1,985,000 for a commercial investment at 45 Lower Baggot Street, Dublin 2. The Georgian retail and office property has five separate leases producing a rent of €71,235, representing a yield of 3.25 per cent. Tenants include William Hill, Cafe Sol and Phoenix magazine.

Atisreal Harrington Bannon, which handled the sale, has also secured €950,000 for Leonard's House at South Circular Road, Dublin 8, in a deal which will show a return of 3.6 per cent. Xtravision is the ground floor tenant there.