Home

A new application for Dublin city’s flagship traffic-free civic plaza at College Green, Dublin, will be submitted early this year, Dublin City Council chief executive Owen Keegan has confirmed to the 'Irish Times'.

 In November 2018 An Bord Pleanála rejected the council’s plans for pedestrian and cycle plaza scheme due to concerns about the “significantly negative impacts” it would have on bus transport and traffic in the city.

 Mr Keegan said he was confident the new application would be approved by the board, even though it would still require buses to be banned from crossing College Green to access Dame Street.

 The council has been preparing plans for the plaza since 2015 and has said the creation of the traffic-free space was essential to the smooth running of the Luas Green line that began operations through the city centre two years ago.

 

 

More than 3,000 extra rooms are due for delivery across 15 new Dublin hotels in 2020.

 Corporate property specialists, JLL, havve predicted “a tougher year ahead for in the hotels sector”, at their annual outlook briefing in Dublin.

Among the new hotels  is the 421 bedroom Holiday Inn at Dublin Airport and the 249 bed Hampton by Hilton Dublin Four Courts (Former Motor Tax office).

John Kajani, whom JLL describes as “one of the most active private hotel owner-operator and developers”, is behind both schemes.

 The only new hotel scheduled to open in  Cork this year is the 136-bed The Dean Hotel at Horgan’s Quay.

JLL said there are other schemes in the pipeline in Cork which they expect construction to commence on in 2020. They are currently selling 71 South Mall – a former banking hall with full planning permission for a 58-bed guestroom boutique hotel.

 In Galway, two hotels are under construction and are due to open in 2020: the 134-bed The Dean Galway and a 27-bedroom extension to the Glen Oaks Hotel.

 

 

 

Dublin tourism attraction The Vaults Live is to shut its doors after just over a year in business, staff were informed on Friday.

The Lagan family, who are the main shareholders, are to pull the plug on the interactive venue after a bid to bring in a new shareholder failed last week. Staff - including more than 20 actors - were told of the development on Friday and are to receive formal emails explaining the closure tomorrow.

The €5.3m walk-through venue combined live performances and special effects to tell a series of stories about the history of Dublin, featuring characters such as Bram Stoker and Molly Malone.

 The tourism venture was originally conceived and financed by broadcaster and entrepreneur Paul Blanchfield and Gerald Heffernan, a former independent producer who founded Irish production company Frontier Films.

The backers had envisaged that the Dublin 8 venue would ultimately attract up to 450,000 visitors a year but the crowds failed to materialise.

 

The Prem Group is to open a new flagship aparthotel in Amsterdam.

The Premier Suites Plus Amsterdam will be a luxury offering located in the business area of Zuidas and is the company's highest-spec premises to date.

Prem Group has taken a long-term lease in the Hourglass Building, which is currently under construction and is expected to become a landmark building in the district due to its distinctive design. Prem Group is investing €2.5m in the fit-out.

 CEO Jim Murphy said this property is taking the group's accommodation "to another level".