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An Bord Pleanála has approved businessman Harry Crosbie’s planned Vicar Street hotel scheme in Dublin 8 after it invalidated on a technicality the only appeal against the project, which came from newly elected Sinn Féin TD Dublin South-Central Máire Devine.
Dublin City Council gave the go-ahead for the scheme in late October for a planned four-star, 182-bedroom “rock and room” concept hotel for Dublin’s Liberties area.
In an appeal against that decision, instead of enclosing the council’s acknowledgment of her objection, Devine’s appeal enclosed the council letter confirming that planning permission had been granted.
“If you walk up Thomas Street on a night when Vicar Street is closed, it is like a derelict street,” Crosbie told the Irish Independent. “It is threatening and dark and unwelcome. What the area needs more than anything is people moving around the streets. What we are doing is bringing life back to the city. That is what I am hoping to do.”
Crosbie said the hotel “will be a huge addition to the area” and that he is looking for an investor and an operator. He anticipated they would soon be in place, estimating construction would begin in three to four months.
Crosbie has been trying to build a hotel at the site since 2008 when planning permission was first approved, but the economic crisis and the pandemic delayed his plans.
According to JLL, more than 2,000 keys have changed hands in the year to date across Ireland, representing about €900M in total, meaning the hotel sector is likely to account for about 40% of real estate deal volume in 2024. JLL forecasts hotel deal volume should approach €1.1B by year-end.
Around three-quarters of the deals by value have been in Dublin, and there are still several Irish hotels pending approval with the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, including Mount Juliet Estate and the Radisson Dublin Airport.
Transactions have been across all classes of accommodation, including the circa €30M deal for the Jacobs Inn Hostel, plus last month’s announcement by Firethorn Trust and SW3 Capital of the acquisition of a major hostel development site at Sackville Place, Dublin, where they will deliver a 588-bed purpose-built hostel accommodation scheme.
Work is expected to start on-site in March, with practical completion expected in January 2027. Upon completion, Firethorn will retain operational management of the hostel, working in partnership with real estate investment manager SW3 Capital.
Last month, Accor began construction of the Sofitel Dublin Airport Hotel, directly connected to Dublin Airport’s Terminal 2. The €100M hotel will comprise 412 rooms and suites and is expected to open in late 2026.
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