Google’s €170M Deal For Boland's Quay Is Almost At The Finish Line
With two buildings already in its possession in the aptly named Silicon Docks area, Google’s plan to acquire all of the Boland’s Quay is almost complete.
As first reported by the Irish Independent, heads of terms for the deal have been agreed between the search engine giant and NAMA appointed receiver Savills Ireland. The agent is currently managing the development of the €170M project. BAM Ireland is the contractor.
The two parties have declined to comment on the agreement, but if it does go through it will be Google’s largest investment in Dublin’s property market so far.
The scheme, once finished, will include three new buildings. This will include a 15-storey apartment block which will reach 157 feet and a 13-storey office block of 161 feet. The tallest building, also offices, will reach 173 feet.
The total scheme will come to more than 396K SF of residential, retail, office and cultural space and will have room for 2,500 workers. Office space will take up 274K SF, retail and commercial will get 15K SF and there will be 41 waterfront apartments and cultural space of 5,910 SF. The project will also have two new civic plazas looking across the water to Grand Canal Dock and a new pedestrian bridge.
It is also reported that Google is still in negotiations with the owners of the Treasury Building on Grand Canal Street with plans to buy the building for a sum in excess of €120M. It is believed talks started in February last year.
The Boland Quay and Treasury Building negotiations are in line with the tech company’s preference for owning the spaces it occupies.
Google bought its European headquarters on Barrow Street and the nearby Monteverto building in 2011 for €100M and €99M respectively.
The preference for buying properties has not limited Google, however. Earlier this week, the company agreed to let new offices from U.S. investment firm Kennedy Wilson at the Chase Building in Sandyford.
Google has agreed to lease 52K SF in the south county Dublin property.
It is the second time in six months the company has leased space in Sandyford Business Park. An agreement was reached with Irish Life to lease four floors of the Blackthorn building.
Taoiseach Leo Varadker cut the ribbon last week on Google’s latest offices in the docklands area with the newly built Velasco building on Grand Canal Street.
The new office comes in at 51K SF and will be home to an Advanced Solutions Lab. It is in walking distance to the company’s Barrow Street headquarters.
