Significant development in Mayo historic hotel renovation saga

A significant development has been revealed in the long-running saga of the historic Imperial Hotel in Castlebar and its ongoing decline deeper into dereliction.

The Connaught Telegraph has learned that the chief executive of Mayo County Council, Kevin Kelly, intends to meet the elected members of the Castlebar Municipal District before the end of October.

He has called the informal meeting with a view to discussing the proposed sale of the Imperial Hotel to an investor committed to renovating the property at the Mall in the county town and reopening it to the general public as a boutique hotel.

Mr. Kelly wants the matter formally placed on the agenda of a Castlebar Municipal District meeting in order to seek approval before coming before a statutory meeting of Mayo County Council in November for full agreement to proceed to sale.

It is understood the council has reached an agreement with the investor to acquire and redevelop the site which has fallen into a state of disrepair over the past decade and a half.

The council purchased the hotel in 2011 for a sum of €800,000.

It was the location where the Land League was founded by Michael Davitt and James Daly in 1879. The building was first constructed around 1790.

Councillor Cyril Burke, who first disclosed last year that the council was negotiating with an investor already involved in the hotel and hospitality sector, has welcomed the news.

He stated: "The town of Castlebar desperately needs the Imperial Hotel restored to its former glory.

"I believe the proposal in hand would be a tremendous success and the people of the town, as well as the business sector, will very much support it once it is back up and fully operational as a hotel again.

"I have pursued this outcome since I first proposed 12 months ago that the council seek expressions of interest in relation to the sale of the property as a boutique hotel.

"I sincerely hope it gets the support of the majority of the elected members when it comes before us in November."

The issue has the potential to be controversial because a number of councillors in Castlebar have expressed a preference for the hotel to be retained in council ownership and developed in line with plans submitted to the Department of Local Government a number of years ago for the regeneration of the town's 'historic core', an initiative which also includes the Mall, Rock Square, backlands at Ellison Street, the old Post Office and works at the Military Barracks, for which funding of €2.5 million was specifically directed.

Government funding of €11 million was allocated for these works prior to the Covid-19 outbreak in 2020 and works have yet to commence on the projects, albeit a contractor was recently appointed to transform the old Post Office building at Mountain View into a community youth resource centre.

During a visit to Castlebar earlier this year, the Minister for Local Government Darragh O'Brien expressed a determination that these works would finally start.

However, it has been indicated to the council that monies set aside for repurposing of the Imperial Hotel as an innovation hub may be used under certain conditions in other parts of the historic core reactivation project in the event of the property being sold.