Plans to extend luxurious Cashel Palace Hotel fail to get council support

Tipperary's most famous landmark, The Rock of Cashel .

Tipperary County Council has refused to back plans by the owners of the luxurious Cashel Palace Hotel for an extension close to the historic Rock of Cashel site.

The council said it is “not satisfied” that the proposed development of the 5-star hotel would not “adversely impact” the cultural heritage landscape.

In response to the planning application, the council also said it was concerned that the extension could impact the Rock of Cashel’s bid for Unesco World Heritage designation.

As a result, the council said the proposed development — which was submitted by Marymount Assets Limited, the owners of the Cashel Palace Hotel — “cannot be supported”. 

Planning application

The application was for an extension of the Cashel Palace Hotel, with a proposed 28 hotel bedrooms in two one-and-a-half-storey blocks on the southern slopes of the Rock of Cashel.

“The planning authority [Tipperary County Council] consider that the application site and its setting may be of such significance that development of hotel accommodation of any scale may be constrained.

“In this regard, the planning authority considers that alternative sites should be considered,” they said.

Cashel Palace Hotel owners have now been asked to explore the proposal through engagement with the council and the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage — who also recommended that the application be refused.

A report from the department read: “The Department’s previous advice and submissions appear not to have informed this proposal in terms of the sensitivities of the site and the scale of the proposed development.” The department acknowledged the “high quality of the works” previously carried out at the Cashel Palace Hotel before saying they continue to be willing to work with the developer to consider other options.

Heritage Impact Assessment

The application was also found to not have been supported by a Heritage Impact Assessment “of the outstanding value of the Rock of Cashel complex in line with internationally recognised standards and the archaeology assessment provided with the application contains limitations,” the council's response read.

A spokesperson for the hotel said: “The Cashel Palace Hotel acknowledged receipt of a request for further information.” 

The spokesperson noted that the applicant, “which has an exemplary track record of sensitive development in the region, will take some time to consider the request and will respond comprehensively in the new year.” 

Local backlash

The council's move follows a backlash by locals and archaeologists due to the development's  proximity to the landmark site.

A total of 62 submissions were made to the council since the application for planning permission was submitted on October 25, 2022.

The current application follows a previous bid in 2021 for a similar project which was subsequently withdrawn due to a significant number of objections from locals.

The applicant now has six months to respond with alternative designs and information clarifying numerous matters within the application.

In July, the Rock of Cashel was among three Irish applications to be included in the new World Heritage Tentative List for Ireland, along with the Valentia Island transatlantic cable and the Passage Tomb landscape in Sligo.