New five star hotel in Donnybrook gets the green light

Approval has been granted for a €50 million five-star hotel on the site of a former seminary in Donnybrook following a successful appeal to An Bord Pleanála.

Dublin City Council had previously refused planning permission for a 169-bedroom hotel on the site of the former St Mary’s College (pictured below) on Bloomfield Avenue in Donnybrook.

An Bord Pleanala however reversed that decision saying it was satisfied that the hotel, subject to compliance with a number of planning conditions, would constitute “an acceptable quantum of development in an accessible urban location.”

It also rejected the advice of its own planning inspector who recommended that the project should not be allowed to proceed.

The board also found that the new hotel would “not seriously injure the residential or visual amenities of the area nor seriously injure the fabric or setting of the original buildings and their historic features.”

Dublin City Council had refused planning permission for the hotel on the basis it did not meet the zoning objective of the 1.2 hectare site, which was to set aside 25 per cent of the land for open space and/or community facilities, as well as concerns about the height of the development and loss of mature trees.

Several local residents also submitted objections.