Cleared for take-off

IT is a sign of the times that helicopters are popping up more and more on Irish radar screens, on golf courses and even on domestic front lawns.

But this place, just a few minutes west of Cork city, goes one better: not only does its occupant fly helicopters but he's the second owner of the property to have this mode of transportation.

Muladhara is a 5,500 sq ft colonial-style home at Ballinhassig, halfway between Cork city and Kinsale - eight and nine miles respectively from each. And it is just a two-minute jaunt to Cork airport by air.

Up for sale by its developer/businessman owner Liam Davis and his wife Liz, it is a place with every facility: there are outdoor ponds and water features, decking, patios, a wending colour-chipped front drive, an indoor heated swimming pool with sauna, games room and gym, apartment-sized master bedroom suite, library and large living areas, and a garage.

It is a fine family home which has been worked on and invested in by several owners in the past decade. Two years ago, the then-vendor flew Liam Davis over this place by air in his own helicopter, and then dropped him in for a look around and this viewing resulted in a sale.

Now, the Davis family, whose business interests include the Davcon building and development company and the Blue Star helicopter flying school at Cork airport, are on the move back to town as the younger generation has flown the nest.

Estate agent William Hunter of Hunter Davis property consultants is in charge of the sale of Muladhara (Sanskrit for foundation) and he quotes a guide price of e1.95 million for the detached homestead on a private 1.35-acre rural site with great views.

"I feel it is going to find a buyer prepared to move just a few miles out of Cork city for a special home. It is just a short drive to the city, to the western suburbs, the airport or Kinsale and its golf clubs," says Mr Hunter.

The red-brick four/five-bed home was built in the 1970s by PJ Hegarty & Co for a city medic, and was architect-designed to an American palette, and this theme has since evolved, with colonial white pillars supporting the long front porch overhang, and there's an unstinting interior specification.

Mr Davis has upgraded the heating system so it now works on six different zones, he reordered the main bedroom suite and put in efficient geothermal heating for the house and swimming pool and also refinished the entire pool complex, including putting in air conditioning. They then converted the garage to a spacious gym and games room, building a replacement detached garage behind the main residence.

The main accommodation has a formal reception room with large white marble and brick fireplace, and the room is so big that the baby grand piano and large-screen TV almost disappear into one end.

Off this is a family room, a dining room, super-bright kitchen with glass ceiling and utility room. There's a library/home office and the back of the house has an extensive conservatory, which links into the pool complex and opens to gardens and patio.