Prime city pad on track

With a mix of old and new, No 148 Lower Glanmire Road, Cork, has a lot going for it, writes Tommy Barker.

UPGRADING works done to this terraced home came in two stages, in the early 2000s, and again in 2008 — and what links the two blasts of investment is mindful good taste.

Now, as the city pad No 148 on Cork’s Lower Glanmire Road comes up for sale, guiding €189,000, a new owner is getting a ready-made job, a period era place near the rail station and city centre, with all mod cons and a great rear extension which is the surprise making of the place.

No 148 is new to market with agent Michael O’Donovan of Sherry FitzGerald, who says it has been fully and comprehensively worked on.

It has kept the best of the old features, marrying them to the new, such as stripped and waxed old pine windows frames and shutters with sound-reducing glazing now fitted in front - which appears effective.

It was re-roofed about 20 years ago, in different ownership, and since then has been more recently insulated, re-wired with some smart, contemporary lighting additions, has gas heating, and large porcelain floor tiles link much of the extended ground floor space.

Scene-stealer is the back kitchen/dining, about 20’ long and brightened hugely by two overhead Velux windows in a butterfly shape, catching every last available lumen of light.

Units are white high-gloss, with hardwood worktops and built-in appliances are in stainless steel, as is the hob splashback.

The front, formal room meanwhile has a solid oak floor, contrasting with the working pine window shutters, and there’s a black cast-iron fireplace. Ceiling heights at ground level are about 9’, and there’s even more head height above where the bedrooms have angled ceilings, up to 10’ high.

There’s two double bedrooms up on the top floor, and a slender third bedroom (which looks out on the Cobh/Midleton rail line road-spanning bridge by Water Street,) is currently shelved as a walk-in dressing room, but could revert to sleeping quarters if needs be, says Sherry FitzGerald’s Mr O’Donovan.

A feature wall, and a bit of an eye catcher, is the exposed old brick and lath partition wall on the landing, with an easy-on-the-eye range of warm, earthy hues, sort of nature’s clay wallpaper.

The stairs is another new installation, in solid oak, and several doors internally also are oak.

There’s understairs storage, a tiny back yard to hold a wheelie bin, and a ground floor shower room.

VERDICT: If plans for Cork south dock renewal on Horgan’s Quay and Water Street ever come to fruition, this area along busy Lower Glanmire Road will be bang on trend.