IRELAND – Ireland's National Asset Management Agency (NAMA) hopes to develop office properties within Dublin's Central Business District (CBD) as part of €2bn in targeted investment, the organisation's chairman has said.
Discussing plans for the Irish capital's CBD, focused around the Docklands area, at an event last week, Frank Daly said: "We hold security over a considerable number of properties and lands on both sides of the River Liffey and are currently assessing the commercial feasibility of a wide range of projects – not least those in the undeveloped part of North Wall Quay in the north Docklands."
NAMA, launched in the wake of the property crash in 2009, is currently developing a €2bn investment programme that will see it develop a number of office and residential projects.
Daly said the Docklands region had been "a marked success" and offered office space to banks and other financial institutions, as well as technology companies.
"The area is expected to require significant new development over the medium term, particularly of commercial office space, to accommodate the continued expansion of the financial services sector and the creation of new business and technology hubs in the wake of the move by companies such as Google and Facebook to the area," he added.
The chairman also suggested the government should consider a more centralised approach to residential property developments.
Currently, planning permission is granted at the local level.
"One of the legacies of the boom is the regional mismatch between housing supply and demand," Daly said.
"Some parts of Ireland will be attempting to absorb excess supply for a long time to come, whereas others are already showing signs of supply shortages, particularly parts of Dublin and some other cities."
