Councillors complain, again, of hotel-spreading in Portobello

Along the side of the newly opened NYX hotel at Portobello Harbour, a new fence appeared in mid-October.

With 16 timber poles, each connected by chains that are fixed to the hotel’s red brick walls, the fencing ran for approximately 20 metres.

It was cordoning off a stretch of grass and gravel that ran alongside the pathway parallel to the Grand Canal, and local councillors at a meeting that month said they were confused by it.

Green Party Councillor Claire Byrne raised the issue of the fence at the meeting of the South East Area committee on 13 October.

This tow path would appear to be on lands owned by the hotel, and it looks like they cemented the poles in without consulting either locals, or Waterways Ireland, the state body that manages the canals, Byrne said. 

“They seem to have done whatever they want, and it’s not in any way complimentary to the area,” she said.

It also isn’t complimentary to the long-awaited plans to deliver a public park on the plaza outside the hotel, she said.

Speaking in the reception after the meeting, Byrne, trying to imagine what the rationale for the fencing might be, said this particular stretch of grass tends to get wrecked by people using it during the summer.

Maybe the hotel intended it to protect the grass, she said. “I’m sure there is a genuine reason, like to replant it.”

Promoting biodiversity would be good, she said. “But, like, aesthetically, for something permanent, it’s not in keeping with the area.”

Some local residents have also expressed issues with cyclists in the area, she said. “It may help to slow that down a little bit.”

Councillors were no more clear on why the fence had been installed as they reconvened on Monday for the November meeting of the South East Area Committee.

The unapproved fencing was still in place, wrote Labour Councillor Fiona Connelly in a question to the council’s chief executive, Richard Shakespeare. “What can we do to ensure that public amenities are not taken up by private interests?”

The issue had been referred to Waterways Ireland, Shakespeare wrote in his response. “The fencing was erected by the NYX Hotel and Waterways Ireland have engaged with the hotel on the issue.”

A spokesperson for Waterways Ireland on Tuesday said it had not given approval for the fencing, and that it has requested this be removed on Wednesday (12 November).

A spokesperson for NYX said it is scheduled to come down on Wednesday.

It was protecting an area of land under the remit of Waterways, they said. “The land had been seeded.”

The fencing would allow the grass to get established, they said.

History

In mid-December 2021, wooden hoardings were put up fencing off most of the public square at Portobello Plaza, once a treasured spot for skateboarders.

A spokesperson for Dublin City Council said it had given the developer permission to use “a portion of the square” to store materials for the duration of the construction project, which should take 18 months to two years.

Once the new NYX hotel opened, a new issue arose: vehicles parking outside the hotel on the public plaza. So the council put in some planters to put a stop to that. 

Soon, though, the planters had been pushed back and a loading bay painted onto the ground at the hotel. 

“How is this allowed to happen, and what action is going to be taken against the hotel who just took it upon themselves to create a loading bay?” Byrne asked council managers at the time.

According to a sitemap outlining the council’s landscaping works, the loading bay is intended to be temporary while the Parks Department carries out its works to revamp the plaza.

A nodding confirmation

Besides raising the fencing along the canal, at November’s meeting of the South East Area Committee Byrne asked, once again, for an update on the long-awaited redesign of Portobello Plaza. 

“Can we just get confirmation whether a contractor has been confirmed for the development of Portobello Harbour Park,” she said.

Councillors were told at the previous meeting that the council was looking at an early December timeline for a turning of the sod, she said. “Are we on track to meet that?”

John MacEvilly, the council’s South East Area manager, nodded.

“Yeah?” Byrne asked. “Great. So we have a contactor confirmed, do we?”

He nodded again.

A more concrete response was written by Shakespeare, the chief executive, in response to a query on this matter by Connelly, the Labour councillor.

Contractors are to be appointed this week with the commencement of works beginning after, Shakespeare wrote. “It is hopeful that works can be complete in Q3 2026.”