Breath of fresh air in a settled city suburb

WHAT is it about Cork and architecture? While cranes were swarming over the capital during the boom, the ‘real capital’ had a handful – at best.

When the wealth of commerce bequeathed stately streets and magnificent buildings to Limerick and Dublin, Cork was hemmed in by its medieval layout and mean, provincial architecture. This is a city that has never followed the architectural zeitgeist, (and prides itself on being contrary), wealth has flowed from its rich hinterland straight to the vaults on the South Mall – bypassing any realisation in stone and slate (save for those very same banks).

Were we too cute to spend good money on buildings of civic worth? And have we relied too heavily on free-booting property developers to define our city? When it comes to domestic architecture, the suburban style has remained static: classic, neo-Victorian for the upper end of the market and blank-faced starter homes for the lower.

Few developments here offer anything outside the norm and that homogeneity of choice has created a conservative buying public. Difference is approached with caution by the viewing public and by the builders looking for a fast turnover. How much TV programmes like About the House, Room to Improve, and Grand Designs have changed modern design is moot – but they must have influenced a new generation of house-buyer – those who want function and form in a stylish package.

A breakaway design in one of Cork’s older suburbs, combining modern, box architecture with an all-green interior could be the thin end of a wedge. Built on the back garden of a turn-of-the-century, Magazine Road house, Montana has mews-style access from Lima Lawn.

It’s a rare example of a ubiquitous, Dublin-approach to inner-city building, and, again, the rarity has more to do with local tastes than planning restrictions. In one, utilitarian block, Montana fits snugly into its site, leaving garden space at the back and a courtyard entrance to the front.

In between, there is 1,800 square foot of modern, highly-insulated house. Yes, the building is uncompromising in its style and in the impact it has on its location, but it’s a breath of fresh air in a city where only a few houses stick their heads over the design parapet. But go inside and see how it works: there’s under-floor heating run by an air-to-water source, stone flooring to maximise its effect, zoning for each room and a state-of-the-art audio-visual system.

The kitchen is coal-ash grey with a long island/breakfast bar and there’s a separate living room, with a ground-floor bathroom and utility sandwiched between the two rooms. Walls are built block on flat, with insulation on the outside and a special render finish; windows are high efficiency with white on the inside, grey outside. The interior of the kitchen and living room is stark, the palette veering more to black and white, with blue spot lighting in the living room.

Enter the main hallway, however, and that’s translated into a softer feel, with warm, wooden stairs and occasional furniture in mellow oak.

Upstairs is very cosy and there are four, good bedrooms fitted off an irregular landing with a big, master suite. Finish is excellent with mood lighting, quality sanitary ware and good joinery, and the design is by Innishannon-based, Barnes Murray de Bháill, consulting engineers.

Montana is a perfect capsule, offering high-efficiency, low-energy, modern living in a location that’s private and secure, but a minute’s from the city’s main institutions. It’s being sold by Dan Howard, of Dooley and Howard, for offers in the region of €650,000.

A true one-off.