Tower Road in Castleknock takes its name from the clock tower on the Farmleigh estate. Some 37m (120ft) high, it was erected by the engineering department of the Guinness brewery in 1880. It supplied water to the estate and, until recently, was wound each day by hand.
Sunnyslopes, a Tudor-style Edwardian property close to Farmleigh was built by a Mr Higginbotham, who worked as an engineer in Guinness. The house was constructed in 1918 – just a few years after Arthur Guinness (1876-1949), who also worked as an engineer in the family firm, built Glenmaroon, which stands opposite.
The properties share similarities – conspicuously the Tudor-style cross gable roof, but Sunnyslopes is a more modest 170sq m (1,830sq ft), than the 1,300sq m of Glenmaroon.
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The current owners of Sunnyslopes, which is well deserving of its name due to the stepped gardens and aspect, added an extension to the property in 1997 which mirrors the original building.
The extension added a kitchen, utility area, master bedroom and a large attic space which was amalgamated with the original attic, and now occupies 48sq m in addition to the 170sq m of the property itself.
Two internal walls were removed to give the centre of the house a spacious L-shaped living and dining area.
A further addition of a sunroom, with both southerly and westerly aspects, was constructed in 2003.
High amenity area
Pleasant views take in the valleys of Palmerston, right across to the Dublin Mountains and St Stephens Hospital. Set high over Waterston Park, this is a high amenity area so cannot be built on, the only sounds audible are cows lowing and the rush of water from a weir on the Liffey.
The property has four bedrooms, two of which have original fireplaces, and the main bedroom is dual aspect and provides great views.
The attic is used as a further bedroom which links to a living area on the same level and is accessed via a stairwell in the extension.
While new owners will want to update parts of the house – the family bathroom in the original part of the property could do with a facelift.
However, it is the gardens, which have flourished for over a century, that make this a truly special home. Set on different walled tiers – as the property slopes downwards – they extend to 0.2 hectares (0.5 acres) and include old kitchen garden cold frames, an orchard, and an impressive Cornus controversa, or wedding cake tree, visible from the livingroom.
The house is set behind electric gates, and shares a driveway with another property set below the gardens. There is ample parking for three cars.
Though just 150m from the Knockmaroon gates of the Phoenix Park, the property feels a million miles from the city. Sherry FitzGerald is seeking €1.295 million for Sunnyslopes.
