Glasgow’s Pollokshields Has Mansions, Green Spaces and an Artsy Vibe

The following article was published in the online paper "Mansion Global"; url: https://www.mansionglobal.com/articles/glasgow-s-pollokshields-has-mansions-green-spaces-and-an-artsy-vibe-120120

I include it here since it belonged at one time to Sir John Maxwell of Pollok. I like learning what happened to property that once belonged to family. It is encouraging to know whether some place that meant something to my ancestors still hold meaning for others.

The Scottish neighborhood attracts creative types, and family homes are in demand

BY CLAIRE CARPONEN 
 |  ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON JANUARY 26, 2019  |  MANSION GLOBAL​

Green spaces at Pollok Country Park in Pollokshields, Glasgow. JEFF J MITCHELL / STAFF / GETTY IMAGE

The neighborhood of Pollokshields lies in Southside, a large area that runs along the southern bank of the River Clyde, has become a popular alternative to the West End, Glasgow’s most affluent spot.

Pollokshields was developed as an upmarket area during the Victorian and Edwardian eras on land owned by Sir John Maxwell of Pollok, a politician and philanthropist. It was named after his ancestral home, Pollok House, which lies on the western edge of the area in the Pollok Country Park.  

This planned urban area features grand townhouses and mansions made from locally sourced red and blonde sandstone set along wide, leafy avenues that were built in the 19th century, when Glasgow’s economy was booming, alongside Art Deco properties and 1960s homes and apartment blocks.

​The property market in this area has traditionally performed well, according to agents, but it is on an upward trajectory. Buyers priced out of neighborhoods in the West End are moving into the area, which has created high demand for apartments, agents say. These new buyers tend to be young people working in the creative industries, which are bringing a trendy ambience to the area.

Two-bedroom flats are the most popular type of homes, and they typically sell within two weeks of being put on the market, said Graeme McInnes, executive valuer at Countrywide North in Shawlands. "There are usually five to six people bidding on a single property," he said.

Boundaries
This oval-shaped area has Terregles Avenue running along its southern border; Darnely Street on its eastern edge; St Andrews Crescent, St. Andrews Drive and Maxwell Drive on its northern side; and Dumbreck Road lies on its western side and borders the green spaces of Pollok Country Park.

Price Range
Buyers can expect to pay between £100,000 (US$128,960) for a one-bedroom flat in a 1960s block and £1.2 million for a large detached house, according to Mr. McInnes.

Grand townhouses and mansions in good condition cost from £600,000 to £1.5 million, according to Alison Anderson, of Rettie estate agency in Shawlands and Newton Mearns.

There are handful of one-bedroom apartments, but the majority of flats come with two or and three bedrooms. A two-bedroom flat usually costs about £160,000, Mr. McInnes added.

Housing Stock
Pollokshields offers a mixed bag of property types: There are large purpose-built apartments known as town flats, period conversions, semi-detached houses and detached villas, mansions with up to 10 bedrooms and a few tenements, or purpose-built apartment blocks.
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On St Andrews Drive, between Pollok Country and Maxwell parks, and Dalzier Road, which borders Pollok Country Park, there are wide avenues of detached red villas and large gardens. Streets between Pollokshields West and East stations contain rows of attractive terraced sandstone houses and town flats with communal and private gardens.

What Makes it Unique
It is not as posh and well-known as the West End, but it is an attractive and well-heeled place: Streets are wide and many are tree lined and feature homes that have ornate living spaces with carved ceilings, large reception rooms and period windows.

Four miles from George Square, Glasgow’s main square, it sits in the heart of the Southside and has Maxwell Park and Pollokshields West and East railway stations within its boundaries.

Green spaces can be found in abundance at Pollok Country Park, which features acres of grassy areas and a museum housing the Burrell Collection, which includes works of art by Edgar Degas and Paul Cézanne, as well as Maxwell Park. Most homes have gardens, which appeals to those wanting to put down roots.
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Streets have close-knit communities and it is a socially and ethnically diverse area. Albert Drive is home to Scotland’s first purpose-built Sikh temple—built from scratch to be a temple rather than being converted from another building—and it has a number of grocery shops selling Asian food.

The Pollokshields Burgh Hall stands at the edge of Maxwell Park, Glasgow. Botany Bay / Wikipedia

Luxury Amenities
The area has thriving coffee shops, restaurants and delis. Nithsdale Road has cozy coffee bars, wine bars and Ollie’s, a modern late-night bistro and is just round the corner from Moyra Janes, a traditional café serving British and Scottish dishes. The Fish People Café, a relaxed seafood restaurant on the Pollokshields and Kinning Park border to the north of the area, is another popular dining spot.

More trendy spots are opening up now that more young people are moving into the Southside area. Neighboring areas in the Southside offer greater choice. There’s Glad Café in Shawlands, a music venue with a licensed café which lies just south of the neighborhood, about a 20-minute walk from Maxwell Park. In neighboring Strathbungo to the east, there is Halloumi, a modern Greek-Cypriot mezze restaurant; The Rum Shack, a Caribbean bar and canteen; and the Wee Beer Shop, a craft beer shop specialist.
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Fine dining spots are typically found in the West End, about 3.5 miles away, and Merchant City, under three miles away. Merchant City’s Ingram Street also has classic high-end clothing stores including Mulberry and Armani. (There are no high-end shops in Pollokshields.)

Contemporary art exhibitions, plays, films, live comedy and music are on year-round at the Tramway, an arts venue in a former tram depot in Pollokshields. It sits next to a green space and public arts development known as the Hidden Gardens.

Top schools in the neighborhoods include Craigholme School, an independent co-ed school, which takes boys aged 3 to 12 and girls aged 3 to 18, and Hutchesons’ Grammar School, a  co-ed grammar school for students aged from 3 to 18.  

Who Lives There
A mix of professionals, millennials and families, who work in the finance, construction, banking, creative and tech industries live in Pollokshields, Ms. Anderson said.

Notable Residents
Scottish songwriter and pianist Eric Norman Woolfson and Scottish electronic musician Rustie were raised in the area.

The art nouveau architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh, who designed the Glasgow Art of School, lived in an apartment on Regents Park Square a few streets away in Strathbungo. The property bears a plaque commemorating the architect who lived there from 1896 to 1900.
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Outlook
Sales transactions in Glasgow dropped from 1,099 in September 2017 to 932 in September 2018, according to the U.K. House Price Index Scotland for November 2018, which is published by the HM Land Registry. (The estimate for September 2018 is calculated based on around 85% of the final registered transactions.)

In contrast to the city as a whole, demand has remained strong in Southside and West End in 2018, according to Rettie’s Glasgow Market Review, which was published in the fall of 2018.  

The average price of a Pollokshields house is £210,142, which was more expensive than nearby Shawlands (£169,551), according to data by property portal Rightmove, and higher than the city average which stands at £134,327, according to the HM Land Registry.

​Outlook
Sales transactions in Glasgow dropped from 1,099 in September 2017 to 932 in September 2018, according to the U.K. House Price Index Scotland for November 2018, which is published by the HM Land Registry. (The estimate for September 2018 is calculated based on around 85% of the final registered transactions.)

In contrast to the city as a whole, demand has remained strong in Southside and West End in 2018, according to Rettie’s Glasgow Market Review, which was published in the fall of 2018.  
​
The average price of a Pollokshields house is £210,142, which was more expensive than nearby Shawlands (£169,551), according to data by property portal Rightmove, and higher than the city average which stands at £134,327, according to the HM Land Registry.