Cosgrave's first apartment development in Northern Ireland is being launched this week in the Eastbank area of Laganside in Belfast. The new scheme is being sold from plans, which can be viewed in Hooke & MacDonald's Belfast and Dublin offices. Investors can arrange a turn-key package which includes legal arrangements, furnishing and letting. Sterling prices range from £74,950 for the smallest one-bedroom units up to £159,950 for three-bedroom penthouses with panoramic views.
QuayGate, a partnership between Cosgrave and locally based Building Concepts under the name Malone Enterprises, is one of the biggest launches in Belfast this year. It is also the first major development on the east bank of Laganside and therefore an important milestone in the transformation of Belfast's docklands. In the initial phase, 30 out of a total of 118 one, two and three-bedroom apartments and three-bedroom penthouses will be for sale. Eight one-bedroom apartments cost from £74,950 . There are also 20 twobedroom apartments, priced from £93,950 and two three-bedroom penthouses from £159,950. The first apartments will be ready by August 2001.
QuayGate is located a few hundred yards from the former Howden Sirocco Works, a Belfast landmark. It is within walking distance of the city centre and close to the Waterfront Hall and Hilton Hotel. A few hundred yards away is the Odyssey Project, a £100 million entertainment complex due to open next December.
In keeping with traditional Belfast architecture, the six-storey building has a redbrick exterior. An impressive entrance foyer is planned, fronted by a tower of planar glass and with a seven-storey atrium above the stairwell. There will be two highspeed lifts serving all floors.
Each apartment is designed with wide windows to take advantage of the views over the River Lagan and the city centre. Security intercoms will be standard and fitted kitchens will include an oven, hob, extractor, washer-dryer and fridge-freezer. Some of the apartments have balconies and two and three-bedroom units will have en suites in the main bedroom.
Penthouse apartments costing from £159,950 will be clad in glass. Most will have large roof terraces with dramatic views. A roof projection at penthouse level will shade the windows. The landscaped gardens at QuayGate will be a good size, with curved pathways, outdoor seating and extensive planting. Car-parking spaces are included in the price.
The Laganside Corporation has been the prime mover in the regeneration of Belfast's docklands area. Much redevelopment has already taken place and the 43 acres in Eastbank are expected to become as fashionable as the St John's Wharf development at May's Meadow.
