Redevelopment of offices to house 200 people

A RETROFIT of an office space in Park West is nearing completion to provide 86 social housing units, in a redevelopment scheme costing €26 million.

The project sees the conversion of 10,000m2 of existing commercial office space into residential use for more than 200 people who are on Dublin City Council’s housing waiting list.

Harcourt Developments was granted planning permission to convert the two office blocks, 70 and 72 The Plaza, into apartments with community space by Dublin City Council back in 2018.

Planning permission to make modifications to the permitted residential development, increasing it from 84 to 86 units, for Blocks 70 and 72 Park West Avenue and Park West, Park West in Dublin 12 was obtained in April 2021.

Plans were approved by the city council for 36 one-bed units and 50 two-bed units, and includes one parking space per apartment at basement level with the provision of 167 bicycle parking spots as well.

Vacant for some 20 years, The Plaza in Park West was purchased by approved housing body, Tuath Housing, from Harcourt – who built the 230-acre business campus in the 1990s and 2000s.

In 2020, Tuath started the process to acquire the properties with a view to converting the offices into homes for 220 people in a mix of one- and two-bed units.

The two-year conversion project, which was undertaken by Harcourt on behalf of Tuath, used financing from Department of Housing and a loan from AIB’s Social Investment Fund for the project.

Coming in at about €309k per apartment, the retrofitting for residential purposes are in line with Tuath’s strategic objectives, in particular around sustainability.

In Tuath’s Strategic Plan 2021 -2025, it states that “retrofitting homes will not only reduce our carbon footprint over the long-term it will help to boost the economy in the short-term”.

With all tenants lined-up and ready to move in next month, Tuath Housing is set to manage the scheme on behalf of Dublin City Council.

In a statement to The Echo, Harcourt Developments said the project is considered “one of the largest office to residential conversions in recent history”.

Complete with a new penthouse floor, the development possesses exhaust air heat pumps, heat recovery ventilation systems and photovoltaic solar panels were installed to provide for modern heating and ventilation systems, according to Harcourt.