Three-year planning extension for 34-storey hotel on Cork quays

Developer must carry out quayside upgrades and conservation works

The developer has committed to commencing a specified list of works by February 1, 2027. They include: obtaining a fire cert, approving construction contracts, commencing works required to upgrade quay walls, demolition works and conservation work.  Picture: Larry Cummins

The developer behind proposals for a landmark 34-storey tower hotel on Cork city’s quays has been granted a three-year extension to planning permission and has pledged to commence construction “as soon as possible”.

Tower Development Properties Ltd sought to extend its planning grant for a 140m, 240-bedroom hotel on Custom House Quay last month and its request has been approved by Cork City Council. The developer has committed to commencing a specified list of works by February 1, 2027. They include: obtaining a fire cert, approving construction contracts, commencing works required to upgrade quay walls, demolition works and conservation work. The construction period for the project, according to a cover letter from planning consultants McCutcheon Halley, is expected to be “in the region of 20-24 months”. The letter also states that “conservation will be a priority when constructing the development”.

The extension gives the developer an additional three years, up to June 2, 2029, with no additional conditions to those imposed in the original grant.

The site in question - described as “without argument, the most important in Cork city”- includes a series of bonded warehouses, due to undergo conservation and repair work as part of the development. A 16.5m high glazed atrium linking the former Custom House building to the warehouses is also part of the plan, while “significant elements” of the Custom House itself will be integrated into the development. 

Cobblestone paving will also be retained and re-used and there will be improvements to the public realm. The ambitious proposal – with a gross footprint of 31,064 sq m - has strong backing from the local business community, including IBEC and Cork Chamber, both of whom wrote letters in support of an extension to the original planning grant, which was due to expire in May. 

The extension gives the developer an additional three years, up to June 2, 2029, with no additional conditions to those imposed in the original grant. Cork City Council can also extend the permission by another two years (five in total) if the developer seeks to do so within a specified timeframe and provided the planners are satisfied the development will be completed “within a reasonable timeframe”.

Tower Development Properties Ltd, headed up by Kerry man Kevin O’Sullivan, previously sought to extend planning permission for another project in Cork, known as The Prism — a glass office block pitched as Cork’s answer to New York’s Flatiron Building. However, because the request to extend it did not meet planning requirements, it was refused. The site, near Parnell Bus Station, remains undeveloped.