Well Road home draws on its garden features

Former home of artist Gladys Leach has great gardens and access to a virtually private park, finds Tommy Barker.

Well Road, Cork €495,000

Sq m: 126 (1,350 sq ft)

Bedrooms: 4

Bathrooms: 1

BER: G

Best Feature: Siting

THERE’S lots and lots to recommend at Ailette, the former family home of well-known Cork artist Gladys Leach, who passed away last year aged 97.

Set near the top of the Well Road, with Mahon Golf Course and Douglas estuary just peeping into view through the gaps between houses on the other side of the Well Road, Ailette is detached, has great gardens and access via a back gate to the virtually private Ardmahon Park, and is in a tip-top location, above the Well Road near suburban Douglas and Beaumont/Skehard.

Highly regarded painter and known for her drawings of Cork buildings, Gladys Leach most recently lived with members of her adult family (her married name was Hyde), and now as her former home comes for sale, it’s been freshened up with paint and has a bright feel, but is one of those homes with way more potential left for any new owners.

Many of its best rooms have a dual aspect, with extra-large windows (in original steel frames) and it’s all very uplifting, says agent Timothy Sullivan who guides the detached four-bed at €495,000.

There’s about 1,350 sq ft of house, with two principal reception rooms, kitchen with simple units and a utility, and overhead are four bedrooms plus main bathroom. It has gas central heating, and a number of feature tall, wall mounted radiators, and some attractive open fireplaces.

It’s prime now for an extension and energy upgrade, and the first place to look may well be back to the adjacent 270 sq ft garage: it’s begging to be annexed.

At present, beyond the attached garage is a back yard section covered with corrugated plastic, and beyond that is a large, walled-in lawned garden, a decent size, and there’s a ‘secret door’ to the little-known half-acre plus of public park behind, virtually a secret to residents around Ardmahon, only some of whom have direct gate/doors access to it.

VERDICT: It’s going to need more spending, but the setting with direct park access is quite special.