Planning permission sought for hotel at Cork Leisureplex site

A planning application has been lodged with Cork City Council for a 173-bedroom Premier Inn hotel on MacCurtain St.

Whitbread PLC, the owner of Premier Inn, has submitted a planning application to redevelop the Leisureplex site, on the corner of MacCurtain St and Brian Boru St.

A decision by the council is due by December 12. If approved, this will be the company’s second Premier Inn hotel in Cork.

Whitbread acquired the site a month after the company opened the doors to its first hotel, at Morrison’s Quay, to the south of the city centre. The Leisureplex site benefits from an extant planning permission for a 171-bedroom hotel, granted in January 2021, which sets the precedent to redevelop the site into a hotel.

Whitbread’s proposed hotel is similar to the permitted development, in terms of height, scale, and character, but includes a splayed entrance at the junction of MacCurtain St and Brian Boru St to reflect the form of the Coliseum cinema building. The proposed development consists of a one-, five- and seven-storey building, with a restaurant and public bar and reception area occupying the ground floor. As part of the new design, the existing facade of the former postal sorting office will be retained, repaired, and conserved.

On opening, around 40 team members are expected to work at the hotel. A spokesperson for Whitbread has confirmed that Leisureplex will remain open and continue trading until the permission is granted and work begins.

Matt Gent, development manager for Whitbread in Ireland, said: “We opened a new Premier Inn at Morrison’s Quay in Cork in January 2024 and quickly secured our second development opportunity to the east of the city centre a month after.

“The site we acquired, which is currently occupied by the Leisureplex entertainment complex, is a fantastic location for a hotel, given its central location, public transport connections, and many businesses and amenities located in the vicinity.

“Over the last 10 months, we have been working hard, as a team, to rework and improve the extant planning permission to suit the Premier Inn brand. Our proposal will create a high-quality new hotel building, with an ancillary licensed restaurant and public bar, that will provide an attractive addition to MacCurtain St and the Victorian Quarter of the city centre.

“I’m proud of the proposed development we have submitted for planning, and I am certain our second hotel in Cork will trade well and will make a positive long-term contribution to the city.”

Whitbread operates six hotels across Ireland, with more than 1,000 trading guest bedrooms, and believes there is the potential in Ireland for 5,000 Premier Inn rooms.

In line with Whitbread’s commitment to managing its direct emissions to zero by 2040 (scopes 1 and 2), Whitbread’s second hotel in Cork will be powered solely by electricity generated by renewable sources.