Within Walkin’ distance
Wilkin’s Court, Walkinstown, Dublin 12
UNTIL the 1930s, when house building first began in Walkinstown, the area was one steeped in farming. Indeed, the name of the Dublin suburb is a corruption of Wilkinstown, the townland named after Wilkins, a tenant farmer who lived in the expanse in the 15th century.
The name of the newest arrival to the neighbourhood, Wilkin’s Court, is a nod to that agrarian heritage. The development of 61 two, three and four-bed homes and apartments, which is going on the market this weekend, is aimed at mid-market house hunters in southwest Dublin.
Wilkin’s Court is situated off Limekiln Lane, next door to St Paul’s Secondary School and The Church of The Holy Spirit. Its sister development, a 56-unit scheme on Limekiln Avenue called Wilkin’s View, was launched in September 2016. Both are on either side of the St Paul’s School playing fields, as the crow flies, making Wilkin’s Court closer to the city centre than its predecessor.
Jackie Greene Construction is behind both schemes. The initial phase at Wilkin’s Court will comprise 27 two-bed apartments, threebed duplexes, as well as three and four-bed houses. Prices start at €370,000 for an 858-sq ft apartment and at €420,000 for a duplex spanning 1,302 sq ft. Prices for the three-bed homes start at €455,000 — for a mid-terrace style with 1,290 sq ft of living space — and go up to €490,000 for a 1,226-sq ft semi-detached home. The four-beds range in price from €560,000 to €585,000 for an end-of-terrace design, while a semi-detached version measuring 1,516 sq ft costs from €575,000.
The homes have attics that are ripe for conversion into a third floor, which could then be used for a study, according to the selling agent. Once the sale on a home at Wilkin’s Court is completed, the buyer can opt for a stairwell to be built into the attic.
The timber-frame properties, designed by McCrossan O’Rourke Manning, will be arranged around an open space. The houses have a mix of brick and render to the facade, along with a slate canopy over a green front door, a front bay window to the front, and cream-coloured double-glazed windows from Rationel. There is a garden and a paved patio to the rear of each house, while the front driveway has a cobble-lock finish.
Inside, the fitted kitchen is custom-de- signed and comes with a breakfast bar and integrated appliances. There are fitted wardrobes to the bedrooms, while the bathrooms and ensuites have double-sized showers, shower screens, and extensive tiling.
Each house comes with an A3 BER, so buyers moving from properties built before the latest building energy regulations were introduced could slash their utility bills. The homes are heated using an efficient gas boiler and thermostatically controlled radiators. PV panels top up electricity supplies for free.
Walkinstown has become increasingly popular with commuters. The city centre is 6kms away and the area is served by the Luas red line and four bus routes.
Three and four-bed showhouses at Wilkin’s Court will be on view tomorrow and Sunday, between 2pm and 4pm.