TDS AND COUNCILLORS have raised concerns about the number of proposed hotel rooms in the redevelopment of St James Gate in Dublin 8.

Plans from developer Ballymore for the so-called ‘Guinness Quarter’ were officially lodged with Dublin City Council in July, after the redevelopment was announced by Diageo in 2020.

The site is planned to be a mixed use development, with both residential and commercial buildings within the proposed complex.

The current proposal would see two hotels and 336 apartments built within the St James’s Gate complex, with a mix of apartment types and build-to-rent and build-for-sale.

However, concerns have been raised about the number of hotel rooms in particular, with 304 beds being proposed to be built in the area across the two hotels.

Several local councillors and TDs have raised these concerns with observations submitted on the project.

One councillor, the Green Party’s Michael Pidgeon says that while the overall development is positive, there is an overemphasis on hotel rooms.

“The development having two hotels on site is simply a mistake,” Pidgeon told The Journal.

“They’ve overemphasised the hotel and commercial development to my mind… the need for housing massively overrides that,” he added.

He said that permanent housing needed to be a priority over additional hotel rooms in the capital.

“Given the ongoing housing crisis, and Dublin City development plan rules around overconcentration, I believe that the proposal for two hotels is a mistake. The combined 300+ beds for visitors seem like an overdevelopment in the wrong sector, and it would be preferable for extra permanent housing instead,” his submission reads.

Pidgeon said that the apartment developments themselves were a good mix of both build-to-rent, build-to-sell and social housing, which will make up 20% of the properties.

“This is exactly the sort of site that should be developed for residential,” he said, adding that it had good connections to the city centre through the Luas and buses, as well as a good local community.

Sinn Féin TD Aengus O Snodaigh and local councillor Máire Devine submitted a joint observation on the plan, saying that the development was “most welcome”, adding that the plans were respectful and “reflect the social and industrial history that defines The Liberties”.

However, both raised concerns about the hotel development in the area, asking whether or not the local area had the infrastructure capacity to cope with this many hotel rooms.

A joint observation was also submitted by People Before Profit TD Bríd Smith, Cllr Hazel de Nortuin and Cllr Deirdre Cronin, who raised concerns about high rise buildings in the development, saying that they were “totally inappropriate” among houses and four to five storey flat complexes.

The local representatives also said that the high proportion of build-to-rent accommodation in the area would be unaffordable for locals and “will totally change the character of the area”.

The observation instead suggested that both “public and affordable” housing is required and that it would keep in line with the existing character of the local area.

Plans for the site were originally floated five years ago in 2017, before developer Ballymore was selected by Diageo to carry out the project.