Developer Sean Mulryan’s Ballymore Group has “topped out” the first building at 8th Lock, the final phase of its residential development at Royal Canal Park in Ashtown, Dublin 15. The event was attended by German real estate investment manager Union Investment, which paid over €200 million to acquire the 435 apartments and health centre under construction at the scheme in 2021.
Quite apart from being Union’s first investment in Ireland’s residential market, 8th Lock is the first large development here or in the UK to make use of a pioneering low-carbon product known as CarbonCure. This allows recycled CO₂ to be embedded into fresh concrete during mixing without compromising performance. To date CarbonCure Technologies has prevented over 174,000 tonnes of CO₂ being released into the atmosphere, with millions more set to be sequestered into the future. Ballymore is employing the technology with Kilsaran at the 8th Lock.
Sean Mulryan, chairman and group chief executive of Ballymore Group, said: “At Ballymore, we’re committed to playing our part in a more sustainable and carbon-conscious construction sector. I know Union Investment shares our drive for sustainability excellence and fully supports the use of such state-of-the-art sustainability practices.”
Martin Schellein, head of investment management, Europe at Union Investment Real Estate GmbH, said: “We were attracted to 8th Lock by Ballymore’s reputation for delivering high-quality residential developments built in a sustainable manner. Boasting high sustainability standards and located in close proximity to Dublin city centre, the completed 8th Lock will be a landmark property in our European residential portfolio.”
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The 8th Lock scheme has also been designed to perform to the Nearly Zero Energy Building (NZEB) 2030 standard. This will futureproof the development to ensure it operates at 2030 energy-performance levels upon completion.
Situated on the site of the former Ormond Printworks on Ratoath Road, the scheme will comprise 218 one-bedroom and 217 two-bedroom apartments, and 4,200sq m (45,208sq ft) of commercial and amenity space. This will include public plazas, a healthcare centre, pharmacy, own-door offices and a gym. Some 255 car parking spaces, electric vehicle charging points, disabled parking and nearly 950 bicycle parking spaces will be provided at surface and undercroft levels.
Once this final phase of Ballymore’s Royal Canal Park project is complete, the overall 162,000sq m development will consist of over 1,630 homes, office space, cafes and retail units including an already-operating Aldi supermarket.
