Georgian building was bought last year and will have an extension of up to seven storeys
It is envisaged that the restored property, which will include an extension of up to seven storeys, will have 30 bedrooms.
The Corcoran family – headed by Andrew and Laura Corcoran – owns Perryville House, in Kinsale, which they acquired in 1997.
The property bought by them at 73 Lower Baggot Street is in the heart of Dublin’s central business district, and was put up for sale last year by Colliers with a €3m guide price. It was owned by the State’s Health Research Board, which had acquired the property in 1992.
Colliers billed the sale as a “unique opportunity” to acquire a Georgian property with a large mews site “in an unrivalled city centre location”.
It noted that the property included a number of period features, including cornicing, sash windows, ornate fireplaces, ceiling roses and stained-glass windows.
The site also includes a substantial garden that is 38 metres long and includes an original, two-storey stone-built coach house.
The Corcorans’ Kilcolman Partnership vehicle has just applied to Dublin City Council for planning permission for the new hotel at the location, which is a protected structure.
They plan to demolish a non-original one-storey side extension, and restore and modify the carriageway entrance facade. The carriage house will be used for laundry facilities for the planned new hotel.
The family intends to build an extension ranging from two to seven storeys with a roof garden and “living wall”. They also plan to retain and restore wall murals and undertake repairs and renewal works to the roof, decorative plaster, ceilings and sash windows.
The site in Lower Baggot Street
The planned new boutique hotel comes after hotel investments in the capital and across the country surged following Covid.
A report this week from Deloitte Crane noted that there were 2,850 hotel rooms under construction at the start of this year across Dublin, Cork and Galway.
More than 550 of those were completed in the first quarter, while 1,080 are due for completion by the end of this year.
A number of new brands are also arriving in Ireland, including Citizen M, Ruby Hotels and Hoxton.
The Ruby Hotel on Dublin’s quays recently opened and has 278 rooms.
The 261-bedroom Citizen M Hotel is slated to open next year.
But the boom in hotel openings could be set to fizzle out.
“There are a number of really encouraging indicators that show the recovery of the hotel market in Ireland following Covid-19, from construction activity to occupancy rates,” said John Doddy, a partner and head of real estate at Deloitte Ireland this week.
“However, it is uncertain whether this stellar market performance will continue, as occupancy, average daily rate and revenue per available room each recorded a decline in the year to March 2024,” he added.
Mr Doddy said that initial market soundings suggest a weakening in demand, with hotel groups citing the increased Vat rate and increased competition as key challenges facing the industry in 2024.
