Major Douglas development plot adjoins two others with over 1,000 homes on stream

What's in a name? €6m-€7m land offer is in a place called Castletreasure, next to Moneygourney

Castletreasure Douglas where 24 acres of   development land is publicly for sale via McKenna Auctioneers.

Set between two of the larger Cork suburban house development sites already set to deliver over 1,000 homes — one well underway, the other just in for planning — is a key 24- acre landbank, up for sale on the edge of Douglas village and likely valued at between €6m and €7m.

Castletreasure Douglas land zoning map

Going publicly to market is 24 acres of zoned development land at Castletreasure, Douglas, located near the Bayly site for 472 homes on 52 acres being currently developed by Cairn Homes, and it’s also adjacent to a site where planning has recently been sought for 580 houses and apartments by Murnane & O’Shea, in a development with a value of up to €200m if planning is granted at the sought density.

Treasure-chest?

This latest Castletreasure land holding is listed with auctioneer Michael McKenna, acting for a private farm landowner and it’s understood it had been more quietly on the market up to two years ago with considerable keen interest shown at that stage, including from major developers already with sites lined up close by.

However, a sale didn’t progress, and now the vendor has taken the decision to put it on the open market.

Development around outer Douglas, beyond Maryborough Woods (pictured here in 2007) and Maryborough Ridge, Douglas. File pic: Denis Scannell

With a likely value of €300,000 to €350,000 per acre and easily capable of taking a density of up to or over 15 units an acre, it’s expected to get strong interest, and possibly from at least one of the adjacent developers, with other new players also likely to join in the pursuit.

It has services nearby, and the area’s profile will rise as the Cairn Homes development Bayly gets a formal launch of three- and four-bedroom homes in the main via agents Savills, currently being advertised for release by summer 2024. The Bayly development went on site around 2021 with mention back then of first homes possibly available by 2022, almost two years ago.

Cairn’s is a c €150m-plus new homes development by a valley site on the edge of Cork’s Douglas village off the Carrigaline Road, by Douglas Golf Club. It had previously been tee-ed up for development in the mid- 2000s by then-active Cork developers Frinailla, who had planned to relocate Douglas GAA club, at peak market times and with plans also then mooted for a golf club relocation as well as a move by Cork Constitution RFC, also to outer Douglas.

In the event, all three of those targeted sports facility stayed put.

A decade later, housing is now mushrooming in this Douglas valley, stretching over to Ballybrack and Moneygourney, via the likes of Cairn, Murnane & O’Shea, and others, while the remainder of the former Rockforest Foxwarren site at Moneygourney also went to the open market last month.

That 6.17 acres at Foxwarren, with a planning due to expire this year for remaining 23 units, was priced on launch at €2.45m, or c €100,000 per stand for large detached homes, by Savills.

Outer Douglas

Into this frenetic fray comes a further 24 acres with Cork City agent Michael McKenna, capable of taking 350+ units and likely be developed under a large-scale residential development.

Mr McKenna confirmed that his site had been ‘sale agreed’ almost two years ago after off-market discussions with major players.

Value for new builds here, if offered to the private market, would most likely be in excess of €400,000.

Development value of the three residential sites — Cairn’s, Murnane & O’Shea and this 24-acre holding now up for grabs and likely to bring homes supply here to as many as 1,500 units — could surpass half a billion euros.

DETAILS: Michael Mckenna Auctioneers, 021 4279368