Business

Portrush beachfront complex sold just days after being listed for £3m

New owners expected to retain restaurant at popular north coast site

The complex at 1 Causeway Street in Portrush, which features two penthouse apartments and the 55 Degrees North café and restaurant.
The complex at 1 Causeway Street in Portrush, which features two penthouse apartments and the 55 Degrees North café and restaurant.
By Ryan McAleer

A luxury beachfront apartment and restaurant complex in Portrush has been sold just days after it was listed on the market for £3.1 million.

The Causeway Street development, which overlooks the Arcadia Beach, features two three-bedroom penthouse apartments, while its lower levels are home to the 55 Degrees North restaurant and café.

The property has been sold by the Wilton Group, headed by Australian property investor Justin Quirk.

Mr Quirk, who has lived in Northern Ireland for 23 years, did not disclose the value of the deal or identify the buyer.

However he said the owners are involved in the hospitality trade.

He expects the restaurant on the site to remain open, but under new ownership.

Causeway Coast & Glens Borough Council granted planning permission last year for a proposal to turn the restaurant space into four apartments.

Mr Quirk, who later acquired the building, submitted a revised application in May this year, seeking permission to convert the restaurant and café into three large luxury apartments.

He said the new owner has no interest in pursuing those plans.

“The buyer is going to retain it as is,” he said.

The complex at 1 Causeway Street in Portrush, which features two penthouse apartments and the 55 Degrees North café and restaurant on its two lower levels.
The complex at 1 Causeway Street in Portrush, which features two penthouse apartments and the 55 Degrees North café and restaurant on its two lower levels.

“They’re not property developers.”

But the deal is expected to trigger a change in the team behind the restaurant.

The current 55 Degrees North management is expected to end their tenancy on the weekend of September 14.

Mr Quirk is best known for his work restoring and redeveloping Wilton House, which reopened on Belfast’s College Square North last year.

The up-market accommodation now offers short-term lets for mostly corporate clients.

“It’s doing phenomenally well,” he said. “It’s a really nice building, really high-end. It’s one of six five-star properties in Belfast.”

The luxury penthouse homes 1 Causeway Street in Portrush are thought to be among the most expensive apartments ever sold in the north.
The luxury penthouse homes 1 Causeway Street in Portrush are thought to be among the most expensive apartments ever sold in the north.