The Congregation of Christian Brothers will be hoping that the continuing demand among developers and investors for land capable of accommodating large-scale residential development will help secure the sale of a significant property from its Dublin portfolio.
The former Emmaus Retreat Centre in Swords is being offered to the market by agent Bannon at a guide price of €12 million, with the proceeds of the sale being used to meet what the selling agent describes as the Christian Brothers’ “charitable and legal obligations”.
The congregation has been involved in the sale of land close to a number of Christian Brother schools in Dublin in recent years, including land at Oatlands in Mount Merrion, sold in 2013 to a property developer for an undisclosed price. In 2017, it agreed the sale of playing fields at Clonkeen College in Deansgrange to a builder for a reported €18 million. The congregation said the latter sale would, upon its completion, help fund its contribution to the redress scheme, a State-operated scheme set up in the early 2000s in response to revelations about abuse in religious-run institutions.
While an application by the Christian Brothers in 2022 to have the Emmaus Retreat Centre and its 16.6 acres of grounds rezoned for housing under the Fingal Development Plan 2023-2029 was unsuccessful, the property’s positioning between the fast-growing town of Swords and the M1 motorway should, according to the selling agent, ultimately see it being used for residential purposes, subject to planning permission.
The Emmaus Centre is situated close to Estuary station, the proposed northern terminus stop on the planned Metrolink. Estuary station is also proposed to feature a 3,000-space multistorey park-and-ride facility. The area surrounding Estuary station is set to serve as a future development zone for housing and other uses. The entire 16.6-acre Emmaus site is currently zoned MRE – Metro and Rail Economic Corridor and is categorised as an “accessible location” on the planned line.
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The subject property was used as a retreat centre from 1960 to 2019. The onset of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 saw the centre’s closure. From 2022 until recently, the property was used as accommodation for those fleeing the war in Ukraine. The Emmaus Centre extends to a gross internal area of 5,534sq m (59,574sq ft) and comprises 72 bedrooms, catering and meeting/conference facilities, along with a former church. There is potential to add further accommodation, subject to planning permission.
Paul Doyle of Bannon said: “This is an exceptional opportunity to acquire a strategically located property on the northern outskirts of Swords, situated next to the proposed MetroLink northern terminus. Given the extensive existing accommodation, which includes 72 en suite bedrooms, on a large zoned site of 16.6 acres, the property offers a short-term income opportunity as well as longer-term large-scale residential development potential.”
