In a niche of niceness

Rose Martin is charmed by a house on Wellington Terrace in Cork

WELLINGTON Terrace is a sort of cosmic Coronation Street. This renovated row sandwiched between St Luke’s and the Lower Glanmire road in Cork City, is home to a ache of creative types.

And its niche niceness is probably why a house marked €350,000 here last year eventually sold for around €500,000.

Of course, it was a pretty good property too and the easy access to the city (whatever about car access) was a factor in its sale. That and the fact that you have peace and quiet within 10 minutes of town.

The selling agent for last year’s property was Vincent Clinch and he’s been called in on the job again: this time to sell No 1, an end of row three-storey.

The F&V Sheahan agent is looking for offers in the region of €490,000 for this house, which has some lovely gardens.

Steps lead up to the back garden which climbs in increments towards a 20’ high stone wall.

Vines thick as an arm snake around trellising, and the herbaceous borders show all the signs of spring. The steep, south-facing garden is railed in with bespoke metalwork in peppermint shades.

Back down and around there’s a front garden that’s only beginning to show what it can do, despite its small size. There is plenty of interest in this old plot, where the soil is black and deep and paths are made in old terracotta.

Inside, the interior has been tweaked to allow a run of living rooms and a sunroom extension in the former yard.

The old back door by the stairs has been blocked up, giving greater space to the hallway. The main living room looks out over the grain silos on the southern quays with the rail shunting yards of the Kent Station in the foreground.

This area has two big windows, high ceilings and built ins at either side of an old fireplace, which also comes with copper canopy and pretty tiles.

An arch separates it from the sit-in kitchen which comes with stainless steel worktop and built in oven and microwave — but built into the walls because the depth allows it.

A big breakfast bar creates a galley with the wall units and a caboose behind houses a neat utility with a sweet casement window onto the sun room. There’s a tidy little bathroom tucked behind.

The sunroom has a big, PVC lantern in the solid roof and 10 foot high windows facing over the small yard at the rear. This is tiled in terracotta in a continuation of the sunroom and has a little store room in the area under the stairs.

The house is pleasantly decorated with much use of wallpaper which looks so right with these high Victorian houses.

The first floor has a master bedroom, with a full bathroom to one side and a bank of girlie built-ins along the width of the room. An upgrade here would create a magnificent suite.

Behind is another double bedroom with en suite, and off the next landing is the smallest bedroom in the house which also doubles as a study with sofa bed.

The second, attic bedroom is a bit of a revelation in that the entire gable wall is finished in glass. The present incumbent is a ballerina and this is perfect for home training. It’s also a very good way of creating a light and interesting room.

Wellington Terrace is still in the throes of change. Some of the slummier properties at the end are being gutted and the last of the rental properties is now on the market with auctioneer Tim Sullivan for offers around €305,000, but it needs lots of work.

The majority of the properties are family owned and very well kept with individual personalities shining through in the garden treatments and door colours.