Dublin's Central Hotel and the nearby Trinity Street car park have been acquired for an undisclosed sum by London-based Deutsche Finance International (DFI) in a joint venture with Dublin-based BCP Capital.
The hotel's asking price was approximately €40 million when it hit the market via estate agency Cushman & Wakefield in late 2018.
Revamp Plans
An Bord Pleanála has given the hotel's new owners the green light to increase the property's bedroom count from 70 to 112.
The new owners are also planning to enlarge the hotel's Library bar and create both a basement restaurant and a central courtyard.
Operator
Windward Management has been appointed as the operator of the Exchequer Street venue.
Creating "Value In Prime Locations"
The Irish Times quotes DFI director Paul Nearchou as saying, "These are our first investments for the Fund in Ireland, allowing us to create value in prime locations and benefit from highly supportive structural trends, including an undersupplied commercial real-estate market, strong GDP growth and high levels of foreign direct investment.
"Against this backdrop, we feel confident in our ability, and that of our partners BCP Capital, to maximise the inherent value in these two prime central Dublin assets."
"Expected To Deliver Significant Returns"
Meanwhile, BCP chief executive Nick Cullen commented, "By leveraging our expertise of the Dublin market, along with DFI’s experience in operational real estate, these initial investments are expected to deliver significant returns through an active asset management programme."
© 2019 Hospitality Ireland – your source for the latest industry news. Article by Dave Simpson. Click subscribe to sign up for the Hospitality Ireland print edition.
