Shortly after completing the sale of our long-established estate agency business in 2013 we set about releasing the potential of the freehold properties that we had acquired over the previous 10 years. Having refurbished our private homes over the years this was our first development project under our Grove developments banner.
We had been associated with this property since the early 1970s when it was owned by the rail network and James Lawlor was starting out in the estate agency business under Douglas Allen Spiro who leased the office at that time. Jim recalls there were many restrictions regarding its development potential and so it remained a modest single storey “hut” for many years. We acquired it firstly as tenants under our own brand when it fell into disuse and disrepair in the early 1990s then as freeholders after successfully purchasing at Auction around 2000.
During the preceding years much had changed in the planning world and after the Higgins Group successfully developed our immediate neighbours property into apartments we reviewed our options and found that it was possible to demolish the existing “hut” and create a three storey Townhouse style development of offices allowing an improved ground floor office with shop front and two floors of offices with separate access, yet still offer parking and small amenity garden.
