New Bid for 87-Bedroom Hotel on Former AIB Site in Dublin 4

A hospitality company has launched a new plan to build a hotel at Baggot Street Upper in Dublin 4, having previously been refused permission by Dublin City Council. A statutory planning notice confirms that The Raglan Townhouse Hotel Ltd is now seeking permission for an 87-bedroom hotel on the same site. In June 2024, Dublin City Council refused permission to the company for a 100-bedroom hotel at numbers 46, 48 and 52 -54 Baggot Street Upper and at 46, 48, 50 and 52-54 Eastmoreland Lane, Dublin 4. The refusal came after the nearby Dylan Hotel and the Pembroke Road Association outlined concerns over the scheme in submissions with the council. The new notice states that the hotel would include a cafe/bar, hotel reception and 12 guest rooms at ground floor level. It also involves a change of use at number 48 Baggot Street Upper from offices to hotel bedrooms. [ Plans for 100-bedroom Baggot Street Hotel lodgedOpens in new window ] In addition, the scheme involves the change of use of Nos 52 to 54 Baggot Street Upper from bank branch (it was operated by AIB) and offices to a hotel and the construction of a new four-storey building to the rear of numbers 46, 48, 50 and 52-54 Baggot Street. The council blocked the 100-bedroom hotel plan after concluding that it would be overly dominant, would not conserve nor enhance the special architectural character of the setting of the protected structures and their curtilage, and would result in extensive and unjustifiable demolition of the original historic fabric. In a submission drawn up on for the owner of The Dylan Hotel, Lyndonmont Ltd, planning consultant Thomas Freeman told the council that his client had concerns over the design of the planned 100-bedroom hotel in terms of its height and scale and the impact it would have on the Dylan on Eastmoreland Lane. Elsewhere, Dublin City Council has granted planning permission to Ray Grehan’s Castleforbes Hotel Ltd for an enlarged scheme at Sheriff Street Upper, Dublin 1. Castleforbes has secured permission to increase the number of bedrooms by 42 from 219 to 261 and increase the number of storeys from nine to 10. A report by planning consultants, Brady Shipman Martin stated the rationale for the additional facilities came from the site’s location close to the Convention Centre Dublin.