After master-builder Alexander Strain developed the roads around Iona, but before he headed beyond Glasnevin village to build the houses in Cremore, he built 30 Crescent Villas.
In 1929 the site on the corner of Crawford Avenue behind St Columba’s Church on Iona Road allowed for the building of a 169sq m (1,819sq ft ) detached house.
He set the accommodation over three floors to maximise the usable space. In a major renovation programme the current owners refurbished throughout, from replacing the roof and repointing and cleaning the brickwork to updating the kitchen and bathrooms.
That was in 2009 and they put the house on the market in 2014 before withdrawing it some time later. The distinctive redbrick, bay windowed house is now for sale through Lisney seeking €1.1 million.
The house has two interconnecting reception rooms – the front with the bay window – with lovely proportions and sliding doors between them. Both have original fireplaces and the ceiling cornices are more Edwardian influenced and plain than the more decorative ones usually found in Iona redbricks.
The extended kitchen has maple units with a door leading out to a south-facing garden that is about 12m (40ft) long. There is vehicular rear access from Crawford Avenue and a garage, big enough for one car, at the end of the garden. Typically on these roads parking is on-street, so the garage is a plus.
There are five bedrooms – four doubles and a single, making this a house with obvious appeal for families trading up. One bedroom, at the back of the house, has an en-suite, and as there are windows in the gable wall, two have duel aspect, always an attractive feature in period homes.
The original cast iron fireplaces in the bedrooms still have their pretty decorative tiles. Three bedrooms are situated on the first floor, beside the family bathroom, two others are at the top of the house where there is also a shower room.
The house has been redecorated since the last time it was for sale so new owners will find little to do although with an E-rated BER, they might look to improve the energy rating.
