Bel Air, a five-bedroom detached residence on the prestigious Westminster Road in Foxrock, Dublin 18, was built around 1962 by Elizabeth and Matthew Connolly, owners of the well-known Connolly’s shoe shop chain. For the successful retail couple, this was their trophy home, and it was designed in a mix of contemporary and period styles.
Connolly’s closed down in 2010 after 60 years in business. The couple died in 2015 and 2016 within six months of each other, and Bel Air passed down equally to their four adult children. However, it has lain unoccupied since then as the siblings were unable to agree on how the property should be sold. Two of the siblings had obtained expressions of interest from developers; however, completion of the sale was contingent on the developer getting planning permission. The other two siblings wanted the house to be put on sale on the open market to both developers and private buyers, and they applied to the High Court to make an order for sale under the Land and Conveyancing Law Reform Act 2009.
In January, the High Court granted the application, ordering the sale of the house on the open market and appointing estate agent Daphne Kaye to execute the sale.
The double-fronted redbrick residence measures 311sq m (3,350sq ft) and stands on 1.09 acres of substantial grounds surrounded by cut-stone granite walls and high hedging. The house – with wide hallway, well-proportioned rooms and high ceilings – is not listed, and has scope for a complete refurbishment and extension for those with deep pockets, while the grounds – on an open and level topography free of mature trees – have potential for development.
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As the house has been unoccupied for about 10 years, the carpets and furnishings have become a little shabby, but the house itself has been well built and the period-style cornicing and centre roses are pristine. A portico at the front entrance with four Doric columns opens into a tiled entrance porch and then into a spacious reception hall with understairs storage and a fully tiled guest cloakroom.
To the left of the hall are two large, interconnecting reception rooms, mimicking the Victorian style, separated by sliding doors. The dual-aspect drawingroom to the front has a feature bay window and marble fireplace and hearth, while the sittingroom to the rear also has a marble fireplace and hearth. French doors lead out from here to a west-facing conservatory with triple aspect, designed for summer evening relaxation.
To the right of the hall, facing the front, is a large diningroom with feature bay window. At the end of the reception hall is a wall of glass bricks, and behind that is the breakfastroom, with a door to the kitchen, which has a range of fitted units with tiled surround and an oil-fired Aga. A door from the kitchen leads to a small sunroom. This entire rear section would be an obvious candidate to extend into a large, open-plan kitchen/dining/family area.
Upstairs is a wide landing with five large double bedrooms off it. The principal bedroom to the front has a dual aspect with a feature bay window, wall-to-wall built-in wardrobes and a bathroom en suite. Bedroom two, also to the front, has a feature bay window and double built-in wardrobe. Bedroom four has built-in Sliderobes. The main bathroom has clearly been modernised with wide tiling, and has a bath and separate shower. Off the landing is a large hot press with lagged cylinder and dual immersion. The house has oil-fired central heating, but mains gas is also available.
Outside is a sweeping driveway, with a generous 35m frontage on to Westminster Road. There’s tons of garden space on either side, ready for some imaginative landscaping. To the rear is a disused tennis court with a hard surface, a carport and gardener’s shed, and behind that is a gate leading to an adjoining site known as “the field”: a 0.27-acre space that would have potential as a separate development without impacting on the house itself.
Whatever a buyer does with Bel Air, one thing that won’t change is its prime location on this exclusive road in Foxrock. The house is a two-minute walk from the N11 quality bus corridor, and handy for shopping in Deansgrange and Cornelscourt. It’s just a short drive from the M50, and there are numerous schools, sports and leisure facilities in the area.
Bel Air, Westminster Road, Foxrock, Dublin 18, is now for sale through Daphne Kaye & Associates with an asking price of €3.25 million.
