Politicians in Drogheda are concerned that plans to turn the town's largest hotel into a centre for asylum seekers will devastate tourism.
Local councillors in the Co Louth town will hold an emergency meeting on Thursday to discuss Government plans to convert the four-star D Hotel.
Labour councillor Pio Smith expressed concern about the “lack of consultation” with local representatives about the decision to accommodate international asylum applicants in the 113-bed hotel, which will reduce the town’s tourist accommodation by 56 per cent.
The decision is going to have a major impact on business in the town with a potential loss of €12million in revenue and job losses, Mr Smith told RTÉ’s Morning Ireland.
There was “a lot of shock and disbelief in the town in regards to news” following the closure of Marks and Spencer shop. People were fearful at the loss of 56 percent of tourist accommodation “in one fell swoop” and the impact this would have on the business community and jobs in the area.
The community was not averse to international protection applicants coming into the town, he said. “The reality is that there has been no consultation, really with the local authority or local politicians, and the local businesses. And it just seems like it's a fait accompli.
“There are two options open to the government in regards to this. They could have negotiated and consulted with people over a period of time, because this has gone on there for the last six months. You know, one option for the Government was to recognise that we've taken 56 percent of tourist beds out of the town, that it was going to mean a deficit of roughly €12 million in the local economy. And that's going to have a kickback in regards to local businesses. Probably some local businesses closing and people losing their jobs.”
The reality was that “on the one hand” there were 510 international applicants facing sleeping on the streets if they are not accommodated in the hotel, “on the other hand, you've got a situation where you're going to have a significant negative impact on the town in terms of jobs and in terms of loss of income, and tourist potential.
“We should never have been placed in this position. If the Government had come along and negotiated with all of the stakeholders and not ignored the main stakeholders, i.e. the local authority, the politicians and the business community, they could have come along with a number of different options.”
One option would have been to acknowledge the impact on tourism and put a business support fund for €12 million in place which could be administered by the local authority, he said.
An economic impact assessment could have been carried out to determine the potential effect on the hospitality and retails sectors in the town. Another option would have been a survey of all buildings around the town that could be prioritised for retrofitting, he added.
“They had another option, which was to say, listen, we'll take 50 per cent of the beds and, we'll take, 50 per cent for tourists. None of those options were discussed or even considered. And if that had taken place, definitely there would be less concern in the town.
“I don't want people dying on the street, that's for sure. But what I am for is for meaningful negotiation and consultation with stakeholders, and that didn't take place. “
When asked about “meaningful negotiations” by the Department of Integration, Cllr Smith pointed out that negotiations had been going on with the D Hotel for six months, but that the local authority and local representatives had received an email “on the day”.
The deputy mayor of Drogheda, Cllr Kevin Callan, said the local authority is seeking a meeting with the Minister for Integration to request intervention over the plans.
He said members of the local authority had been shocked that there had been no consultation and were concerned at the impact of the loss of tourist beds to the local economy.
The Independent councillor told Newstalk radio that the Minister was “the only person” who could intervene at this stage.
“We hope to seek ministerial intervention to reduce the loss of this hotel to our town as a vital part of our local economy.
“We're extremely shocked at the announcement that this was done without any consultation. And I've emphasised this is going to have a massive economic impact on the town itself. Tourism is a massive part of what we actually deliver and draw to, and these rooms were a vital component of our tourism strategy for the last ten years.”
Cllr Callan said the hotel had indicated capacity had been 90 per cent to 95 per cent on average. Three coach trips a week stayed at the hotel. “The average spend in the town per week from that hotel in restaurants, cafes, bistros was €105,000 on the lower end of the scale. And we have calculated with our local committee that we're going to lose €5.4 million in disposable income to the local economy from tourists.”
The loss of tourist beds in the D hotel meant there would now be 17 beds in Scholars hotel in the town centre and 55 and 90 beds in two other hotels outside the town, he added.
“If the local authority had been notified, because we have a number of strategies that depend on having this bed capacity, something could have been done.”
