IMG Developments, which owns the Portmarnock Hotel and Golf Links, is planning a £10 million investment in a new hotel and clubhouse, and in improvements to Golf Links Road. IMG said the expansion plans reflect the commercial success of the existing hotel and golf course.
An additional 192 bedrooms will be provided in the new 7,300 sq m hotel. There will also be a 30-bedroom two-storey "dormy house", with a single-storey 2,000 sq m clubhouse and a course administration building.
The development provides for 358 car-parking spaces and pedestrian and vehicle access at four points off Golf Links Road. An environmental impact statement has been prepared for the approximately seven-hectare site.
Plans were originally drawn up in conjunction with the existing hotel, the former Portmarnock Country Club, which was extended and reopened as the Portmarnock Hotel and Golf Links about four years ago. Planning permission, which has now lapsed, was granted by Fingal County Council, but according to IMG's general manager, Shane Cookman, the company concentrated on the extension to the existing hotel and "getting its facilities right".
The decision to go ahead with the development now is due to the success of the existing venture, said Mr Cookman. Also, the lead-in to the Ryder Cup, which will be held at the K Club in 2005, is expected to see an increased interest in golfing holidays in Ireland.
The golf links does not have individual members but serves the corporate market through green fees and, of course, people staying in the hotels. The new development is situated away from the existing complex, and the fact that there will ultimately be facilities in what amounts to two houses is only a greater plus, according to Mr Cookman.
The "dormy house" accommodation is to facilitate people who prefer to stay in a more club-like atmosphere than a hotel.
Meanwhile, An Bord Pleanala has upheld planning permission for a new 18-hole golf course on Bray Head. This will allow Bray Golf Club to move from its existing nine-hole course in the centre of Bray, which will be redeveloped.
The deal is thought to be worth about £50 million and will see the old course developed with new roads, schools and playing pitches, alongside housing, leisure, office units.
