Several publicans on O'Connell Street have lodged an appeal against plans to close the popular open-space beer garden earmarked for budget hotel rooms.
Last month, Dublin City Council granted planning permission to Holiday Inn Express for 95 additional hotel rooms that will result in the loss of a beer garden that serves three pubs Fibber Magee’s, The Living Room and Murray’s Bar and Restaurant. The developer Findlater House Ltd had originally sought approval for a seven-storey extension, but that application was refused following concerns among council officials around loss of daylight for surrounding buildings.
Instead, Dublin City Council have now approved plans for a slightly lower six-storey extension, which is designed to provide an additional 95 guest rooms. The extension will bring to 309 the number of rooms at the Holiday Inn Express hotel, which is located on the corner of O’Connell Street and Cathal Brugha Street.
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In recent weeks, a petition was set up to save the beer garden, and a 'Rock Against Hotels' protest is expected to take place at the Ambassador Hotel on 11 August against plans to get rid of the social space. Politicians such as Green Party TD Neasa Hourigan have argued that the removal of the beer garden would be a "loss of cultural space" for Dublin city centre.
Labour Councillor Darragh Moriarty previously told Dublin Live that the closure of the beer garden is "incredibly disappointing". He said: "This is one of the only beer garden spaces in the inner city and there are three distinct pubs in the area Fibber Magee's, The Living Room, and Murray's. It's just incredibly disappointing to see more hotels being catered for, I think people are sick of hotels.
This week, a report has revealed that the owners and/or leaseholders of the three pub businesses, Noel and Anne Murray, have lodged an appeal to An Bord Pleanala against the move to remove the beer garden. An appeal on behalf of the Murrays by O'Neill Town Planning states that they “are vehemently opposed to the redevelopment of this space for a central city budget hotel” on the site.
In the submission, they argued that granting permission for the hotel extension would “with one stroke of the pen delete an important hub of cultural activity from the north inner city”. They also said that the social space serves as an important mixing ground for the three pubs.
Meanwhile, the city council planner in the case noted the objections concerning the loss of the outdoor seating area which serves the three pubs, the Living Room, Fibber Magees and Murray’s Pub. The planner states that a number of the submissions refer to the loss of a “unique cultural centre”.
However, the planner stated: "Whilst it is acknowledged that the loss of the outdoor space would be regrettable, the land is within the ownership of the subject site owner, on a lease which is due to expire, and therefore the owner is entitled to cease the use of the area at any time.”
The planner said it is not necessarily considered that the areas which appear to function essentially as a shared Beer Garden “are a hub of cultural activity when compared to the other rich cultural uses the city offers, theatre and arts centres, museums etc and as such there is no objection in principle to the loss of the outdoor areas."
An Bord Pleanala is expected to make a decision on the appeal in November 2022.
Read next:
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