Down a tree-lined street that was once an entrance to the Castletown estate sits Harpur Lane, the new housing development in Leixlip, Co Kildare, developed by Cairn Homes. Although just a short distance from the junction 6 exit of the M4 motorway, these homes enjoy a peaceful setting complemented by natural flora. The scheme is named after Thomas Harpur, who founded a cotton and linen printing mill in Leixlip in the 1700s.
The development of two-, three- and four-bedroom homes is well-situated, close to all the amenities Leixlip has to offer, as well as Celbridge, Lucan and Maynooth, all three of which are just a short drive away. The bus stop at the top of the road goes to Dublin while the nearby Intel campus and the Louisa Bridge train station are a four-minute drive, with trains running regularly to Dublin city centre. The M50 motorway is a 10-minute drive from the development, while it will take about 30 minutes in a car to reach the city centre.
For families, Leixlip has several creches, primary schools and secondary schools. The town is also home to plenty of cafes, pubs, restaurants and supermarkets. Although the road no longer connects directly to Castletown House and gardens, you can walk to the rear entrance of the estate in about 15 minutes. Leixlip is also on the Royal Canal Greenway, ideal for walks. The area also has well-established sports clubs for GAA, soccer, rugby and basketball, and the highly regarded Carton House hotel and golf resort is nearby.
With 119 units in total, Harpur Lane consists of both terraced and semi-detached houses with two, three and four bedrooms, all with excellent A2-energy ratings. Built to comply with NZEB (Nearly Zero Energy Building) regulations, these houses have been designed for optimum energy efficiency and given the current price of oil, gas and electricity, this will help to lessen the impact of current and future energy price hikes. Insulation, double-glazed windows and a Samsung air-to-water heat pump, located in the back garden, all contribute to the high energy rating.
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For sale through joint agents Hooke & MacDonald and Coonan New Homes, the houses start at €415,000 for a two-bed, €455,000 for the three-beds and €570,000 for the four-beds. There are 37 further homes planned for the development, according to the site map, and three apartment/duplex complexes comprising a total of 73 units.
There are two types of two-bedroom homes in the development: Type D1 is a mid-terrace at 86.2sq m (928sq ft); and Type D2 is an end-of-terrace extending to 85.7sq m (923sq ft). These units have a livingroom, kitchen-diningroom, utility room and toilet downstairs and two double bedrooms with en suites upstairs.
The six types of three-bedroom homes include: Type B1, a mid-terrace at 117.2sq m (1,262sq ft); Type B2, an end-of-terrace at 116.5sq m (1,254); Type B2S, an end-of-terrace with side entry; Type B3, a semi-detached house at 116.5sq m (1,254sq ft); Type B3S, semi-detached with side entry seeking; and Type C3 a semi-detached home extending to 116sq m (1,248 sq ft).
These three-bedroom homes have large windows to the front of the house, where the livingroom is located on the ground floor. The kitchen-diningroom to the back of the house features a sleek teal kitchen with quartz worktops by Nolan Kitchens; appliances are included.
There is a utility room off the kitchen and the dining area opens on to the rear garden through French patio doors. Upstairs, the main bedroom at the front of the house has a large en suite and two wardrobes built into a nook in the wall. There is also a family bathroom, second double bedroom and a single bedroom on the second floor. All bathroom tiles and sanitary ware are included.
There are six four-bedroom, semi-detached homes in the scheme; five of which are Type A3, extending to 134sq m (1,440sq ft); and one semi-detached unit with a side entrance at 135sq m (1,456sq ft) labelled as Type A3S. The layout adds a living area to the kitchen-diningroom and a fourth room upstairs which could be used as a bedroom or a study.
The back gardens are seeded for a lawn and have a patio area and dividing fences. There is a paved driveway to the front of each house. The planting around the development aims to promote biodiversity, according to the developer, while an existing watercourse has been retained to create a charming feature crossed by a red bridge.
