Having only recently secured tech entrepreneur Barry Napier’s Cubic Telecom as tenant for some 40 per cent of the office space at the Hive in Sandyford, Dublin, US investor Colony Capital has placed the property on the market with agent HWBC at a guide price of €34.4 million.
The proposed sale of the building, known formerly as Ballymoss House, follows the completion in 2019 of a full refurbishment to LEED Gold and Ber A3 standards, and comes as part of the wider programme of disposals initiated in July 2020 by Colony of its Irish real estate interests.
Since then the Los Angeles-headquartered private equity giant has completed the sale of numerous of the Dublin properties in which it held direct and indirect stakes. The most high-profile of these deals took place in April, and saw Colony secure €292 million from Blackstone for its 75 per cent interest in the Burlington Plaza office complex on Burlington Road and its 72 per cent stake in the Three Building at 28/29 Sir John Rogerson’s Quay and Whitaker Court. Investment group Fortress acquired Colony Capital’s remaining real estate interests in June 2021.
Iain Sayer, who is handling the sale of the Hive on behalf of HWBC, says he expects the Sandyford property’s combination of strong environmental credentials and the quality of its income stream to attract a wide range of potential purchasers.
Located 500m from the Luas Green line stop at Sandyford and within a short drive of both the M50 motorway and the N11, the subject property briefly comprises 70,000sq ft of office accommodation distributed across four floors. The building carries a Platinum Cycling Score and Wired Platinum certification, while staff amenities include lockers, showers and drying rooms together, with an enclosed atrium for shared tenant use.
The Hive’s tenant base currently includes the aforementioned Cubic Telecom who have agreed to occupy 30,000sq ft and NTR Plc which has agreed to occupy 10,000sq ft for use as its new headquarters. Additional space at the Hive is currently under offer to as-yet unidentified party for use as their respective headquarters.
Commenting on the sale of the building, Sayer of HWBC says: ‘’Investors are increasingly targeting assets that meet the very highest environmental standards, and the benefits of this are clear when looking at the excellent tenants that have chosen to locate at the Hive. We expect this property to appeal to a wide range of investors looking for quality in the current market environment.”
