With a cold spring in retreat and green bursting out all over, the just-completed Oatlands development in Castleknock is at its best. It’s located in the courtyard and grounds of the three-storey, 18th-century Oatlands House which, with nearby Luttrellstown and Farmleigh, was once core to the great Liffeyside estates. Here, the 12 houses are delightfully atmospheric and have all the advantages of the immensely thick walls and solid structure of their original buildings.
On a four-hectare (9.89acre) site not zoned for further development, each house is individually designed, has a private, hedged garden and access to communal fruit gardens and meandering walks. Their surrounding and protective limestone walls and arches make a scenic contrast with newly up-and-budding landscaping, older trees up to 120 years old and new flowerbeds.
High ceilings
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Three have already been sold, as has Oatlands House itself; the Property Price Register reports a price paid of €720,000 in August 2017. The nine houses remaining to be sold, and in sizes from 83sq m (893sq ft) to 151sq m (1,625sq ft), vary in design, have high ceilings, large windows, either two or three bedrooms and range in price from €490,000 (for a two-bed bungalow) to €640,000 (for a three-bed townhouse). All are south-facing too, overlooking the Liffey Valley and Strawberry Beds.
The builder/developer, Gerard McGreevy of Bushnell Investments, has the skillset and feel for the work needed on historical sites, while project manager was David Corbelly of AJ Whittaker Architects. The selling agent, Brock Delappe, reports a lot of interest from first-time buyers "seeking to escape the rental trap" as well as downsizers.
Emma Power of interior designers House and Garden Furnishings has made a nice job of creating contemporary living spaces sympathetic to the original 18th-century buildings. Her aesthetic is clearly seen in the 125sq m (1,300sq ft) two bed showhouse – which is selling furnished for €640,000. (The standard two-bed, unfurnished townhouse kicks off at €550,000).
Limed oak flooring
The open-plan dining/sitting/kitchen area in the showhouse has limed oak flooring, a bespoke Fitzgerald fitted kitchen, a wall of wood-framed glass window and French doors out to the rear garden/patio. There is a large utility room off the reception hall and an equally large, bright guest toilet.
Deeply set windows throughout are a testament to the age and thickness of the original walls. One of the first-floor bedrooms has a study corner and overlooks the side of Oatlands House. The other, main bedroom has wrap-around windows over the garden and surrounding trees, an Italian-tiled ensuite and dressing room with serious space, storage and mirrors. The family bathroom is fully Italian-tiled in palest grey and has a separate bath and shower.
The scheme launches this Saturday between 1pm and 2pm.
