Chicago real estate firm Harrison Street teamed up with Irish investment house Elkstone to develop over 1,500 purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) beds in Dublin, Limerick, Cork and Galway by 2028.
The investment is not the first student accommodation project for the $55 billion firm, which is among the most active investors in alternative real estate sectors in Europe. These include investments in student housing, build-to-rent residential and life sciences. The firm’s work in Ireland includes purchases of 15 PBSA assets with nearly 4,900 bed developed to date in partnership with experienced local developers and operators.
The first development in partnership with Elkstone will be Stoneybatter Place in September, which will comprise 142 student beds and is situated on Manor Street in Dublin 7. The five-story property is conveniently located minutes from Technological University Dublin, and is a short distance from Trinity College, the Law Library and Kings Inn.
“Today’s announcement reflects our ongoing commitment to expand our presence in the Irish student housing market, which continues to demonstrate a tremendous need for high-quality student accommodations,” said Paul Bashir, chief executive officer of Harrison Street’s European Business. “80 percent of Dublin’s student population does not have access to purpose-built student housing options, and through our ongoing partnership with Elkstone we look forward to closing that gap by bringing premium student housing options to the market.”
Stoneybatter Place is funded by Activate Capital, a leading provider of residentially led development finance in Ireland.
The strategic partnership of Elkstone and Harrison Street aims to address the significant shortage of modern student accommodation in Ireland’s main cities by offering more choice to existing students, while supporting third level institutions in attracting more international students to Ireland.
Ciarán McIntyre, Head of Real Estate at Elkstone, said: “We are excited to embark on this new journey with Harrison Street. The firm’s depth of knowledge in this sector, matched with our own local and international experience, provides a strong platform to develop a high-quality portfolio of purpose-built student accommodation across the Irish market. We look forward to delivering much needed accommodation to a number of locations and providing a first-class student experience.”
As part of Elkstone’s and Harrison Street’s ongoing commitment to sustainability, the strategic partnership will adhere to the highest ESG standards in both construction and operations, officials said. Projects will be assessed under Fitwel, GRESB and BREEAM criteria, with Stoneybatter Place targeting a BREEAM “Very Good” certification and three-star rating from Fitwel.
