Down by the waterside

Penthouse apartments which provide restful views of sky and water on the edge of the Grand Canal Basin in Ringsend, Dublin 4, go on sale today at prices ranging from £250,000 to £500,000. The Charlotte Quay Dock homes are in an area which up to recently was dominated by industry and shipping, but is now poised to become one of the trendiest locations in the Dublin docklands.

The apartment scheme, due to be completed shortly after Christmas, is the largest and most important along the Grand Canal Basin. It has 242 units which epitomise modern city living, with tall windows and terraces overlooking the water. The focal point of the development, a 16-storey tower block, is in line to become one of Dublin's new landmark buildings and is expected to set a precedent for other apartment developments in the docklands.

Over half the homes have already been sold, mainly to owner-occupiers and the remainder are expected to be bought by well-heeled young professionals, business people and retired couples trading down from large period houses in south Dublin. A total of 31 apartments, including four penthouses, in a seven-storey block known as The Locks next to the tower, are going on the market today to coincide with the opening of three show apartments. The 55 homes in the tower are not due to be released for sale until the new year because of a city-wide delay in installing lifts.

Ken MacDonald of Hooke & MacDonald yesterday released prices for the apartments in The Locks which will be ready for occupation before Christmas. Two-bedroom apartments with an average floor area of 800 sq ft will cost from £172,000 to £205,000. Three-bedroom units with around 900 sq ft are priced from £222,000 to £250,000. For those who want the glamour and style of a penthouse, the prices are considerably higher. There are two two-bedroom penthouses with 800 sq ft priced at £250,000 each, and the creme de la creme, two four-bedroom penthouses, costing a cool £500,000 each. A car parking space comes at an extra £15,000.

The Charlotte Quay Dock apartments and penthouses are easily the most stylish and original to have been completed by Dublin's most prolific builder, Zoe Developments, over the past 12 years. They are infinitely better than any of the other inner city developments launched over the last few years.

The four-bedroom penthouse, to be used as a show apartment, is quite stunning, with around 1,400 sq ft of floor space. The main reception room is a spacious, elegant, open-plan living-room-cum-kitchen, with the kitchen area at one side of the main living space. Ideal for entertaining on a grand scale, it has full-length windows along two sides of the room providing a panoramic view over the Grand Canal basin back towards the city centre. Guests will be able to glide from the living-room to the terrace to admire the night-time city lights. Three of the bedrooms are exceptionally large, and two of them have wonderful en suite bathrooms. The fourth bedroom will be used either as a single bedroom or as a study.

The two-bedroom and three-bedroom apartments also reflect a particularly high standard of design by architects O'Mahony Pike. The overall impression is of space, light, comfort and style. The living-rooms have full-length windows and private balconies.

The quayside at Charlotte Quay is being developed as a public promenade, with jetties alongside the bridge to provide moorings for boats. The lower storeys of the dockside buildings and the tower will have commercial uses, including a restaurant and bar. A ground floor premises has been set aside for local residents, who are to have the use of a jetty which is due to be built at Charlotte Quay.

Hooke & MacDonald is also taking bookings for a number of apartments completed in an earlier stage of the development. Two-bedroom units with 750 sq ft are priced mainly between £155,950 and £200,000. There is also a number of three-bed apartments costing from £325,000.