Ex-Hamilton Osborne King dealmaker Gerry Henry says he is "comfortable but not cocky" about the forthcoming sale of the prime 14.5 acre site owned by the Sisters of Charity on Merrion Road.

Tenders are due to close on March 8th, but while there is interest from "all the heavyweights" the site may not be bought by any one developer. What is more likely is that a consortium will take it on because of the high costs involved. The site had been expected to make around £40 million (€50.8m), but with banks tightening up on lending, and the planners said to be favouring a residential rather than a commercial development, the sale price could be closer to £30 million (€38.1m). That's still a big outlay for a development that could take up to three years to pass through the planning stage.