*Thalassa.
PERMISSION has been granted to well-known Ennis businessman Brian Crowley to demolish his four-bedroom €1m Lahinch property.
Clare County Council have this week given the green light to the demolition of the Lahinch property purchased by Crowley and his wife for €1m in Lahinch last summer and construct a new home more than double in size.
Council planners concluded that the plans by Brian Crowley and his wife, Susan Crowley for their planned six bedroomed home at Thalassa at Seapark overlooking Lahinch beach “would not have adverse impacts on the visual or residential amenities of the area”.
Last summer, former EY Entrepreneur of the Year finalist and founder of healthcare recruitment group, TTM Healthcare, Mr Crowley and his wife Susan purchased Thalassa for €1.005m.
During an online auction which lasted one hour and seven minutes last June where bidding started at €650,000, the Crowleys beat off bids from five other bidders to purchase the property for €1.005m.
The online brochure for the property which built in 1971, stated that “situated on an elevated site with uninterrupted panoramic views overlooking Lahinch Beach, ‘Thalassa’ is a home in one of the most sought after locations along the west coast of Ireland”.
An entry on the Residential Price Property Register confirms that the €1.005 million sale went through on August 13th last.
The new home will be more than double the size in floor space than Thalassa with gross floor space of the new home at 314 sq m compared to the 126 sq m for Thalassa.
Mr Crowley represented Ireland in boxing at under-age level and in 2024 TTM Healthcare generated revenues of €144.26m in 2024 as pre-tax profits increased by 8pc to €12.46m. TTM has offices at the Ballymaley Business Park outside Ennis.
In the Council planner’s report recommending a grant of permission, it concluded that “the dwelling currently on the site is not considered to be of sufficient architectural merit to warrant its retention”.
The planners’ report states that there were extensive pre-planning consultations before the application was lodged and the design of the house was altered during this process which included a site visit.
The report states that “the alterations related to the reduction of the height and scale of the proposal, the inclusion of a mix of renders and the proposed finished floor levels”.
In documentation lodged with the plans, chartered architect, Paul Keating outlined the justification for demolishing Thalassa.
He told Council planners in an email that “the existing house is in a poor state of repair and is unviable as a refurbishment option and as a result we are proposing to demolish the existing house and construct a new build”.
Mr Keating of JE Keating and Associates Architects has told the planners that “in our approach we are acutely aware of the sensitivity of the site and its location in a settled housing estate”.
Mr Keating said that the design approach shows “however we have respected the pattern of development as well as the proximity of the adjoining neighbours”.
Mr Keating told the council that “we will submit a structural report from a qualified engineer stating the degraded nature of the existing structure which will need to be demolished as the clients want to build a Nzeb (Nearly zero energy building) standard compliant energy efficient home”.
Mr Keating pointed out that Thalassa is not a protected structure or within an Architectural Heritage Conservation Area.
