Wetherspoon to spend €15m on central Dublin site
The site, which will house a new pub and 98-bedroom hotel when completed, faced numerous objections before finally being granted approval earlier this year.
Work on the project, which will create 200 jobs, is formally set to begin next February with an opening date slated for early 2019.
“It will be the biggest single investment undertaken by Wetherspoon and will result in our largest hotel alongside a superb pub. Our pubs in the Republic of Ireland are thriving and we are confident that the pub and hotel will be a great asset to Dublin and act as a catalyst for other businesses to invest in the city,” said Wetherspoon founder and chairman Tim Martin.
Wetherspoon operates five pubs in Ireland — four in suburban Dublin and one in Cork — and has long-term plans to operate up to 50 premises here.
It has undeveloped sites in Waterford and Carlow but is targeting much of its medium-term growth on Dublin, where it is on the lookout for more suitable sites.
It has also recently received planning permission for a new pub on Abbey Street, which is likely to also open in early 2019.
Last month Mr Martin said Wetherspoon’s continued expansion will take in both city centre and suburban-based pubs and that planned city centre openings in Dublin and Belfast, over the next 18 months, will act as a bellwether for the group’s future Irish plans.
