The Cabinet has approved the purchase of Ireland’s largest hotel, the 492-room Citywest Hotel and its campus in Dublin for €148.2m, a property leased by the State since 2020.
Initially used as a Covid vaccination site, the government has been using the hotel, owned by Cape Wrath Hotel Unlimited (part of Tetrarch Capital), as a key transit hub for asylum seekers since 2022, with payments exceeding €70.8 million in 2024 alone for accommodating migrants.
The acquisition could house up to 1,000 applicants doubling its current capacity of 764 beds .
Minister O’Callaghan shared that the acquisition will lead to substantial savings compared to leasing costs over time.
The Department of Justice stated that owning the facility will contribute to a long-term strategy for a sustainable accommodation system. The current owners received €51m from the State for the first nine months of the previous year.
Minister of State Colm Brophy addressed resident protests, asserting the effectiveness of current operations at Citywest and the anticipated reduction in operating costs due to ownership
Jim O’Callaghan shared, “It really does represent value for money in terms of the amount of money we’re spending on the private commercial sector as opposed to the savings that can be achieved if we own our own accommodation“
Minister Brophy shared, “we can save effectively 50pc of the operating costs” and commented on the campus serving effectively for many years.”
