Hoardings removed after year-long delay
Monday July 26 2010
IT was an estate that became synonymous with the property boom.
Celebrity endorsements and racy advertisements featuring models were used to sell the units. But for years all onlookers could see of the Malahide Road site in north Dublin were 6ft-tall hoardings.
Now developers have begun removing the hoardings around the homes, which made residents feel "hemmed in" and "claustrophobic".
Flush with some extra funds after renewed sales, the site is even being landscaped in a move which has delighted residents in the Belmayne Estate.
Following pressure from residents, Developers Stanley Holdings have now removed half of the hoardings and replaced them with railings.
"The residents who live there felt kind of hemmed in and slightly claustrophobic because there is this big hoarding and you can't see into where they live. So we have taken down about 150 metres of it on the Malahide Road," Barry Chambers of Stanley Holdings said.
"Apparently it was all planned about a year ago and it was put on ice due to a lack of funds. Now we have had a few sales recently and there has been positive reaction to a recent launch so there is a few more quid in the pot."
Of the 900 units built in Belmayne Estate, Stanley Holdings have sold about 400 with 50 left to sell. The rest are being sold by two other firms -- Shannon Homes and Belmayne Ireland. Prices -- at about €245,000 for a three-bed house -- have come down around 40pc since the peak of the boom, said Mr Chambers.
The removal of the hoardings was welcomed by Labour councillor Sean Kenny, as was the landscaping of a field which is part of the site.
- Shane Hickey
Irish Independent
