Drop the anchor in Rush
Kenure Gate, Rush, Co Dublin ASKING PRICE: €335,000-€430,000
AGENT: Dillon Marshall New Homes (01) 4967574
ALONE portico is all that remains of Kenure House, the grand mansion with a wooded estate that had dominated the landscape and life of nearby Rush for centuries.
In the early 16th century, Kenure — an anglicised version of the Irish for “headland of the yew trees” — was owned the Earl of Ormond. The fishermen of the north Co Dublin community urged him to provide a safe harbour for their boats, threatening to seek employment elsewhere and “no longer dwell in this habitation” if the Ormonds didn’t repair or replace the “decayed pier”. The sheltered harbour and pier they demanded were eventually built — during the reign of James II.
But in 1964, the contents of Kenure House were auctioned off and the estate, which was also known as Kenure Park, was sold to the Irish Land Commission. Colonel Roderick Henry Fenwick-Palmer, the last to live in the Big House, had unsuccessfully battled rising costs, damp and dry rot. The estate briefly enjoyed a new lease of life in the mid-1960s, when it was used as the setting for three films, including Ten Little Indians and Jules Verne’s Rocket to the Moon.
The house was eventually handed over to Dublin County Council. But, unable to find a buyer for the dilapidated and vandalised mansion, the council demolished it in 1978, when the housing estate Saint Catherine’s was built on part of the former estate.
Beside the former Kenure estate, which celebrated its 700th anniversary last year, sits the eponymous Kenure Gate, being developed by Merrion Homes. The scheme, which is a five-minute walk from Rush’s Main Street and 10 minutes from the harbour, is aimed at locals and commuters to Dublin.
Kenure Gate will consist of 31 three and four-bed semi-detached and detached homes — all named after birds — when it’s finished. Ten will be released this weekend, with prices starting at €335,000 for a three-bed from the Kittywake style, which measures 1,150 sq ft and is available as a mid-terraced and semi-detached design. The largest three-bed costs up to €385,000.
Prices for the four-bed, 1,500-sq ft Sandpiper type start at €405,000 for the semi-detached version and range from €425,000 to €430,000 for the detached style.
All the houses at Kenure Gate, located off Park Road, have a rendered facade with a brick trim at the base and a canopy over a colourful front door, while the Sandpiper also has a bay window. French doors lead from the kitchen/ diner to a back garden with a seeded lawn that is bounded by fencing for privacy, while to the front, there is enough parking for two cars in the driveway.
All the houses have both a guest lavatory and a master bedroom with an ensuite shower room, and there are fitted wardrobes to the bedrooms. The custom-built fitted kitchen comes with cabinetry in a contemporary design. The floor tiling provided to the kitchen, bathrooms and utility room is also in a contemporary style. In addition, there is polished chrome ironmongery throughout.
Energy-saving features at the A3-rated properties include zoned heating control and PV panels on the roof that harness solar energy to supply electricity to each home.
Kenure Gate is 26km from Dublin city centre, which is a 25-minute rail journey from the Rush/Lusk train station. Dublin Airport is 18km away, while the Pavilions Shopping Centre in Swords is 14km away.
The showhouse at the development will be open for viewing tomorrow and Sunday, between 1pm and 3.30pm.