Residents Protest Against New Eight Storey Hotel – In this article, Shane Adlum investigates the new hotel development at the back of the Vicar Street Venue Complex and residents reaction to development
Last month planning permission was granted to Mr Harry Crosbie to build a new 4 star hotel next to Vicar Street. A spokesman has said that it “will add to the growing restoration of the Liberties” and “will create a new way for the public to enjoy a live show”.
The planning permission includes the relocation of an existing ESB substation to the ground floor of the new building along with a new switch room. The hotel will have 185 bedrooms and will contain a creative arts studio on the ground floor and a bar/public house on the 7th. The whole building will be arranged around an enclosed internal courtyard space.
One of the conditions of planning permission being granted was that €487,407 must be paid to Dublin City Council to help improve public infrastructure in the area.
Local residents gathered at Vicar Street to stage a protest against the proposed development. Some protesters wielded placards with messages aimed at those who had granted the planning permission; “homes not hotels” and “community need not profit greed” were amongst the notices on display. Around 60 people attended the protest organised by Councillor Tina MacVeigh. She addressed the crowd saying “the nature of this venue beside a residential community is of great concern to the local area”.
The height of the proposed hotel has come in for serious scrutiny. At eight storeys tall it will tower over all other buildings in the area.
The area has seen continuous development for the last two years and some residents are feeling annoyed and stressed with the amount of construction taking place. A number of new hotels and student accommodations have opened recently and some feel that another hotel isn’t what’s needed for the area, citing the lack of green space, new homes and community facilities.
Construction is to be carried out by Walls construction who worked with Mr Crosbie on the original Point Depot and again when it was redeveloped into an arena. Work is due to start soon and they expect to be open for business in 2020 but according to Tina MacVeigh a planning appeal to An Bord Pleanála is currently being considered for an oral hearing.
Photos by Stephen Davis
