Over €107m for 143-acre Kildare town residential site

Development LandThe largest land bank to have come on the market beside Kildare town in recent years will attract developers from Dublin and the local area, writes Jack Fagan

A housing site of 143 acres beside Kildare town in Co Kildare which goes on the market today is expected to attract interest both from local developers and larger players in the Dublin market.

Will Coonan of Coonan Real Estate Alliance is guiding over €750,000 an acre for the land, suggesting that the overall site at Southgreen should make more than €107 million when it goes to tender on November 28th.

Alternatively, it is also being offered for sale in three lots - 60 acres, 43 acres and 40 acres. The proceeds of the sale are to go to a family trust.

The land bank is easily the largest to have come on the market beside Kildare town in recent years. Apart from being zoned for a residential development in the Kildare Town Local Area Plan, it has also been the subject of the Southgreen Area Action Plan which sets a density of at least 12 housing units per acre.

However, given that the site is adjacent to not only the town but the M7 motorway and the Arrow and main line railway station, a higher density development seems inevitable in line with Government policy.

Kildare town, located about 30 miles from Dublin city, has been identified in the Kildare County Development Plan as suitable for "a primary dynamic cluster". Southgreen is considered by local planners as the most appropriate location for future residential development. It is within easy walking distance of the town centre.

The town's unusually good infrastructural facilities are expected to keep the new housing market ticking over. Coonan says that the factors driving the demand for new houses - like good demographics and a stable employment base - remain favourable. The agency predicts that the continuing strong demand from first-time buyers will inevitably lead to a sell-out of any developments at Southgreen.

Kildare town was given a shot in the arm in recent months through the opening of the Kildare Village Outlet shopping facility. The whole area has benefited even more from the opening of the Whitewater shopping centre at Newbridge. This facility, about 10 minutes' drive form Kildare town, is the largest regional shopping centre outside Dublin.