Planning consultant William Doran has lodged a report with Dublin City Council on behalf of Harry Crosbie’s Vicar Street Hotel Ltd, opposing the council’s stall on their proposal for an eight-storey hotel on Vicar Street. The council’s delay came about due to 40 objections, one of which came from a high-ranking Augustinian priest, Father Paddy O’Reilly. Father O’Reilly expressed concern about the over-saturation of hotels and student accommodation in the Liberties area, which he feels is displacing families and putting the long-standing community under threat.
In response to the council’s request for additional information on existing and planned hotel developments within a kilometre radius, Mr Doran asserted that there are currently no hotels for over a kilometre to the west of the proposed site, though there is one to the south. He added that 21 hotels and apart-hotels, including some in Temple Bar, are already present within a kilometre of the proposed hotel location.
Mr Doran insists that residential development will never take place on the site and that the city’s current development plan has accepted the premise of a hotel. He went on to remind the council that planning permission for a hotel at this location was granted three times before – in 2008, 2019, and 2023. He explained that the implementations of the previous approvals did not go ahead due to the global financial crisis and the Covid-19 pandemic. Mr Doran continues to argue that a four-star, 182-bedroom hotel based on the “rock and room” concept would help ameliorate the current shortage of hotel bed spaces in Dublin.
Mr Doran informed the council about his proposal for a new hotel. This establishment would offer an innovative “rock and room” service whereby customers could reserve not only accomodation, but also tickets for events at the Vicar Street venue. He went on to express optimism that this venture would not only boost the evening and night time economy, but would also generate daytime foot traffic, thereby promoting economic activity in the local area. Mr Doran presented data indicating a high demand for hotel spaces linked to the Vicar Street venue, using the fact that 75 shows have been scheduled between the 21st of August and the 13th of December for the venue, which boasts a capacity of 1,000 seats. He concluded by stating that the venue is sought after by artists from across the nation and abroad.