Today's launch of 30 apartments in the second phase of Clarion Quay in the IFSC in Dublin's docklands brings the number so far released to 66. There will be a further two phases in the £65 million development which will provide a total of 148 apartments by 2002. Clarion Quay is between the Citibank headquarters and the 159-bedroom Clarion Hotel which is currently under construction.
A computer generated image shows how Blocks 11 and 12 of Clarion Quay will look on completion. Lift lobbies on each floor will open on to a glazed winter garden. The architects, Urban Projects, got their inspiration for the indoor garden from Holland, a country with a high apartment-dwelling population.
The one-bedroom 527 sq ft apartments are priced at £179,500, the two-bedrooms vary in size from 678 sq ft to 775 sq ft and are priced from £240,000 to £270,000. The two-bedroom duplex apartments are 915 sq ft and cost from £290,000 to £300,000, depending on floor level. The three-bedroom 1,034 sq ft duplex penthouses range from £370,000 to £373,000. Sales are being handled by joint agents Ross McParland and Hamilton Osborne King.
With investors being discouraged from the market there is a trend towards catering for the owner-occupier by building bigger apartments with substantial balconies. Clarion Quay is a joint venture between Dublin Docklands Development Authority and private developers Liberty Homes and Redquartz Developments. The scheme will have six eight-storey towers and three lower rise blocks of five and six storeys. The current release is in two of the lower rise blocks.
The one-bedroom apartments have a garden terrace of 194 sq ft while the two-bedrooms have 215 sq ft garden terraces or balconies which have glass balustrades and timber decking. The duplex units have smaller balconies, from 67 to 140 sq ft, opening from the living room on to the winter gardens, while the three-bedroom duplex penthouses come with a 479 sq ft private roof garden. It is also envisaged that the winter garden will become an extended living area.
The sale price includes a range of Neff kitchen appliances. There is a maximum of four units per lift on each floor. Apartments also come with one year's free membership of the adjoining four-star Clarion Hotel Leisure and Fitness Club which opens early next year. Car spaces are available at £25,000. Completion of this phase is scheduled for autumn 2001.
The first phase of 36 units at Clarion Quay, worth £11 million, sold on the day of release in May with considerable interest from companies within the IFSC. Prices ranged from £180,000 for the one-bedroom apartments, from £245,370 for the two-beds, from £375,000 for the three-beds and from £600,000 for penthouses.
A virtual tour of the first phase can be viewed on www.libertyhomes.ie. One block of 36 units in the scheme has been set aside as affordable housing.
In 2002, the National College of Ireland will open in the IFSC. The completion of the 12-acre extension to the IFSC before Christmas will provide an additional 650,000 sq ft of office space, bringing the total to almost two million sq ft. There are also plans for more retail outlets, cafe bars with river views and a creche. There are currently up to 14,000 people working in the enlarged IFSC area which now comprises 39 acres. The resident population is largely made up of executives, many of whom are working in the centre and renting apartments but there could now be an increase in the number of owner-occupiers. The release on November 2nd of 47 apartments at Custom House Square through Douglas Newman Good attracted 75 per cent investor interest, as it represented one of the last opportunities to buy a new Section 23 apartment. All but nine apartments were sold over the launch weekend.
The completion of Clarion Quay will bring the number of apartments in the area to more than 900.
