Taxpayers to shell out €4m for empty hotel
The hotel has remained unused since it was bought by the State in October 2000 for €3,549,711. And over €650,000 has been spent on security and maintenance at the Co Cork hotel.
An angry county councillor yesterday called on the Government to immediately sell the property in Macroom and stop its waste of taxpayers' money.
"If further evidence were needed of this Government's gross mismanagement of taxpayers' money people need only look at the ongoing scandal of Lynch's Lodge Hotel," Cllr Michael Creed said.
"It has been vacant now for over four years. The cost of security and maintenance, plus the acquisition costs and legal fees to date means that the State has lost more than 4m on this debacle."
The Fine Gael councillor obtained the figures after asking TD Jim O'Keeffe to table a Dáil question.
"If this were private enterprise, heads would role. Unfortunately it's not and no one seems prepared to take responsibility for the debacle. The only real solution now is to sell the hotel and let it be reopened," Cllr Creed said.
The hotel, which is owned by the Office of Public Works (OPW), has been the subject of a judicial review after local people questioned whether the terms of its planning conditions could be changed to accommodate asylum-seekers.
"Regardless of that, if the State can't prosecute a judicial review case in four and a half years then it's time to call a halt. I think they've nearly forgotten it's there," Cllr Creed said.
The Government has proposed decentralising part of the Department of Agriculture to Macroom and, ironically, recognises the need for a second hotel in the town.
Minister with responsibility for the OPW, Tom Parlon, said yesterday he would get an official from his department to outline what will be done with the building. However, no official was available for comment.
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