The owner of this middle sized Victorian house located on of one Birr's finest streets sees himself as a man with a mission - the restoration of the Georgian house next door.
"The proceeds of the sale of my house here," says Dublin-based estate agent Tadgh Campion, "will go totally into bringing the Georgian house back to what it was once." Campion purchased number 14 in 1990 and lived there with his family for seven years. The two-storey over basement house, now on the market for in excess of £350,000, had been extensively modernised before he bought it. Few original features remain. It has fitted carpets throughout, with the exception of the basement kitchen area.
Stone steps lead up to the front door that opens on to the hall with the two main reception rooms to the left. The medium sized drawing room leads through adjoining doors to a slightly smaller dining room. A full bathroom is situated down steps to the right of the stairs leading down to the kitchen.
Upstairs are four bedrooms, the largest of which is a fine room, with two windows overlooking the Mall, that could serve as a reception area. Its full size is currently diminished by the presence of a large fitted MDF wardrobe unit running the length of one wall. The second bedroom is a large double while the remaining two are of good size. The ceiling heights add to the impression of scale. There is also a shower room.
Extensive work has been done on the basement kitchen, which has a range of built in cupboards and a double Aga, which provides the oil-fired central heating. The basement floor levels have been raised and the original stone has been replaced by red deal. There is a large breakfastroom/dining area.
Outside, to the right of the front door, an archway leads to a laneway with shared access to three properties. The kitchen leads onto a small courtyard garden with a converted coach house mews. It is open plan, with a sitting area that includes a kitchenette, and there is a shower room. Upstairs are two bedrooms.
On the sale of number 14, Campion intends to begin the full-scale restoration. The simple three-storey Georgian house is entered on street level, there is no basement. Yet the house is deceptively large and includes a large attic floor with two rooms. Although in poor condition throughout it has all its original windows and some fascinating joinery including fluted architraves.
The kitchen, with its range of subsidiary rooms, offers a window to Irish domestic social history. A coach house stands in the garden, which has side access. When restored, this house - which will be open to the public - will be a charming addition to Birr's existing assortment of fine period houses. It could also serve to alert those interested in similar restoration projects to a small number of neglected properties awaiting attention elsewhere in Birr.
