A development company is seeking to transform a bank property into a classy new boutique hotel in one of East Cork’s most popular tourist destinations.
Harbour Roots Ltd are eyeing up the former Bank of Ireland at Roger Casement Square in Cobh as the location of a new guesthouse with a restaurant, lounge and 8 guest bedrooms.
The property has been vacant for nearly four years after BOI pulled its in-person services from the town in favour of online banking.
However, the developers have hit a speed bump in their plans as the Council ruled its application invalid. Cork County Council have now asked the builders to resubmit a number of layout plans, notices and drawings to fully comply with the requirements for seeking planning permission.
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The proposal is to change the 4-storey bank building, which is a Protected Structure to a “boutique guest house” with 6 en-suite guest bedrooms on the first and second floor, and 2 no. en-suite guest bedrooms on the third floor.
Harbour Roots says it will refurbish the vacant property “to a high standard of conservation and construction,” including work to the roof, masonry and the front facade. It has been proposed to maintain a number of historic features, including a mosaic floor and timber panelling in the current entrance lobby.
The former Bank of Ireland property is a three-bay four-storey former house dating back to the 1850s. It is on the curved terrace of townhouses on Westbourne Place, one of Cobh’s main thoroughfares. The National Built Heritage Service describes it as an “imposing addition to the town,” an “elegant, well-balanced house” with “finely executed” Venetian Gothic style.
The bank closed in October 2021 and was one of 103 branches to shut their doors as part of a major cost-cutting programme and the shift to online banking. It had been the only BOI branch in Cobh.
