The popular and much sought-after suburb of Foxrock began life in the late 1850s, when the Bentley and Fox families imagined a garden suburb in what was then a wilderness in comparison to the busy Dublin city-centre smog. Their planned self-contained community, designed to have plenty of green spaces and leisure facilities, began with the roads of Westminster, Brighton and Torquay, which at that time had access to the city via the Harcourt Street railway line.
As houses popped up, so too did community life with the establishment of schools, churches and a golf club, founded in 1898, while racing at Leopardstown Racecourse had its first gallop in 1888. Said to be inspired by Sandown Park in the UK, the racecourse lies on a 220-acre estate which has become a cornerstone of Irish racing culture.
Low-density, varying house styles which had good-sized front and rear gardens along with amenities far from the bustling city were what attracted buyers back then. More than a century later, these reasons still draw house-hunters at the upper end of the market.
Greentops, a spacious detached home, lies directly opposite the junction with Westminster Road along the N11. In fact, you can see right up Westminster Road from the bedrooms to the front of Greentops, giving sylvan views of the mature plantings of older houses. But you don’t really hear a thing despite its location, as the property has triple-glazed windows and is well set back from the N11.
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It is one of five houses with unusual green tiled roofs along this stretch of the N11. All have generous sites and rear gardens. Greentops sits on a 0.14-hectare (0.34 acre) plot according to the planning permission granted in 2007 for additional accommodation on the site. This saw a single-storey shed/utility room knocked and replaced with a two-storey apartment to the side of the main house. At 112sq m (1,206sq ft), the apartment is more akin to a two-storey guest house given its size, two bedrooms, kitchen, dining and separate living space.
This is in addition to Greentops – the main house in the photographs – which is a spacious five-bedroom residence. When the two-bedroom unit was being planned, its design also allowed for the unit to be amalgamated with the main house to create an even more spacious 298sq m (3,213sq ft) seven-bedroom home, if required.
Testament to its current residents, it is in great condition, and the Ber rating of B2 is indicative of improvements over the years to make it what it is today: a fine, substantial home that will accommodate the needs of a large family on a generous site, close to a wealth of amenities.
It has four reception rooms, including a family room, livingroom and diningroom – that lie off a well-appointed kitchen – in addition to a dual-aspect sittingroom that runs the full depth of the house.
At its core is a triple-aspect kitchen with an Aga taking centre stage opposite a solid oak breakfast bar. Appliances include a Liebherr fridge-freezer and a wine fridge with buckets of storage space in wall-lined kitchen units. From here, there is access via sliding doors to a raised deck housing a barbecue, dining area and outside seating space. Overlooking the rear garden, which has a westerly aspect, it’s a great space for family gatherings with lovely views over the well-stocked grounds.
With five bedrooms – one currently laid out as a study – the principal bedroom enjoys dual aspect and has a Jacuzzi bath in its en suite, which is one of four en suites in this energy-efficient house.
It will be the size, condition and the fact that the house has a separate self-contained two-bedroom guest house that will attract well-heeled house-hunters to Greentops. Its proximity to Foxrock Village, a golf course and indeed a racecourse, along with amenities such as shopping at Dunnes Stores’s flagship Cornelscourt store, a selection of popular schools, boutique shops, cafes and restaurants, add to its offering.
The property, which qualifies for a green mortgage, is now on the market, seeking €2.2 million through Janet Carroll Estate Agents.
