A high-profile site of almost five acres overlooking Dublin Bay, bought at the peak of the property boom for €6 million and used by developer Bernard McNamara as a helicopter landing pad, is back of the market again at €1 million.
The 1.96 hectares (4.86 acres) between Merrion Road/Rock Road and the Dart line was sold to a private investor almost two years ago for just over €400,000 and with site values again rising in recent months because of the shortage of new homes, James Meagher of agents Knight Frank believes the time is right to move it on yet again.
McNamara stopped using the helicopter pad beside the Booterstown Marsh after he was told by An Bord Pleanála that it needed planning permission. He then attempted to use the land for luxury apartments and a public park but was denied permission around 2003.
Meagher suggests that the “superbly located site” is most likely to be bought by a sporting organisation planning to unlock the development value of their current grounds. Other options might be to use it as student accommodation considering its close proximity to UCD or to allow an Avoca-style retail and garden centre to operate from the site. “Whatever use it is put to, a site of almost five acres in Dublin 4 seems damn good value.”
