The product of a joint venture with his sister Ruth Monahan of Appassionata Flowers, Watermint is a small boutique development that defies the preconception that green buildings have to be terribly serious or costly. And the young newcomers also hope to show other developers that 'the build-em-cheap, stack-em-high' model isn't the only way forward.

"A lot of sustainability comes down to good design, " says Neil, who is adamant that sustainable buildings don't have to be more expensive.

Indeed, despite the many extras here, both in terms of design and sustainable features, Watermint remains in the price bracket for the location.

"It was an opportunity to do something exciting rather than just throwing up a standard block of apartments. We want to show others that you can do more, you can fuse environmentally-friendly concerns with high- end interior design and fittings and still be profitable."

While the design team have created a very contemporary and stylish scheme, there's no doubting that chance also played a part in minimising costs.

"The site lent itself to our aims.

It has a south-facing aspect and is tucked into the corner of Cabinteely Park which has lots of existing greenery. So we started from the perfect blank canvas."

Up to now, the pair have worked together on an ad-hoc basis, with Ruth helping out with interiors for Neil's development company, Monti.

This is their first joint collaboration and although Watermint was only launched to the market yesterday, they've already had a huge number of enquiries.

"The site is a major attraction - it's a fabulous location, " adds Ruth who is responsible for the interior design.

"But there are lots of state-ofthe-art extras and we also wanted the apartments to be as comfortable as possible to live in.

So the rooms are all good sizes, they have larger than average ceiling heights, the floor- to-ceiling glazing means they're really bright and we've included plenty of storage space."

Rather than cutting corners to meet budgets, Monti has focused on adding features to exceed expectations and in the process, they may even give the stereotypical image of developers a long overdue make-over too.

The lowdown

Address: Old Bray Road, Cabinteely, Co Dublin, www. watermint. ie Details: 13 apartments and two ground-floor retail units comprised of two one-bed apartments (c 52sq m), six two-bed apartments (c 74 - 92sq m), two three-bed apartments (c 95sq m) and three penthouses (to be released at a later stage) Location: Close to the Wicklow mountains, Foxrock and Cornelscourt.

As well as a regular bus service, the new Luas extension will be five minutes' away Highlights: A low-carbon, boutique development fusing high-spec contemporary style with ecological design. Eco features include: carbon neutral wood chip boilers, solar panels, heat recovery ventilation, recycled materials and floor-to-ceiling glazing.

Design features include dual-aspect units, Japanese-style teak baths, underfloor heating, Poggenpol kitchens with Miele appliances, extensive storage space Completions: from spring 2008 Price: one-beds from Euro475,000; twobeds from Euro650,000; three-beds from Euro750,000 Agent: Gunne New Homes, 01 628 2332