An application has been lodged for a major new development which would consist of the reconfiguration, partial demolishing, and expansion of the Central Hotel into a new 6,554 sq m five storey hotel with 125 bedrooms and a rooftop extension.
The Irish Times says that some of properties at risk because of the planned development include the Globe bar, sister establishment Rí-Rá and the Exchequer.
Labour Party councillor Darragh Moriarty said it would be a huge disappointment to see many of the capital’s most loved institutions being turned into another hotel.
“This is just the latest in a string of vibrant areas in the city that are being taken over. We need lively places for dancing and drinking rather than for another sterile hotel, which we’ve got plenty of already.
“The Globe and Rí-Rá are institutions and so many people have good memories of nights out there.They really are among the staples of Dublin nightlife and they’ll be sadly missed. This is really disappointing."
Meanwhile, Sunil Sharpe, a DJ and member of campaigning group Give Us the Night, said Dublin nightlife is already dying and the potential loss of Rí-Rá would be huge for the city.
“In the last few years we’ve seen venue after venue disappear and Rí-Rá is one of the last great nightclub spaces in the city. There isn’t anywhere else that has run as long and had the same level of consistency over the years.
