Dublin’s suburban commercial real estate sector has received a timely boost with the agreement of a significant pre-letting deal in Cherrywood.
APC and VLE Therapeutics, two Irish-owned drug-development companies, have signed a long-term lease with DLR Properties, a company wholly owned by Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown Co Council, for a new 60,000sq ft building to facilitate the delivery of their planned 130,000sq ft Medicine Accelerator campus.
APC already occupies more than 60,000sq ft in Building 11 at Cherrywood where it employs 260 people. The expansion of APC and VLE’s operations is expected to create up to 300 new jobs and will involve a capital investment of about €100 million.
While the rental level has not been disclosed, new builds in south Dublin’s suburban business campuses are currently commanding about €35 per sq ft, or €10 more per sq ft than older, less-sustainable commercial stock. DLR Properties was advised on the transaction by Conor Whelan and David O’Malley of QRE Real Estate Advisers. Robert Colleran of Robert Colleran Property Consultants acted on behalf of APC.
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Commenting on the signing of the deal, DLR Properties chief executive Conor Dalton said: “We are delighted that APC, an Irish-owned multinational pharma company, has committed to its long-term future with us in Cherrywood.”
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Mark Barrett, chief executive and co-founder of APC and VLE Therapeutics, said the expansion solidified his companies’ confidence in the biopharma ecosystem in Ireland as a global hub.
DLR Properties currently owns and manages 180,000sq ft of buildings and a prime town-centre development site of 13 acres in Cherrywood. This site is set to be developed to provide a mix of residential, commercial and community uses. Located at the Bride’s Glen Luas green line terminus, the town centre has direct road frontage and access to the Wyattville Link Road, which links the N11 and M50 via the business park.
