138 houses on former hotel site

A residential development consisting of 138 houses has been given the green light in Blarney.

The development - which will be built on the site of the former Blarney Park Hotel, St Ann’s Road, Monacnapa - will be carried out for Cork City Council by way of a Project Agreement with HRP Construction Ltd.

It will consist of 138 dwellings, a civic centre containing a public library, a community café, and a 32-child creche. It will cover an area of approximately 3.7 hectares.

Of the 138 dwellings proposed as part of the plan, 119 will be houses. There will be 4 four bed houses, 76 three bed houses, and 39 two bed houses. There will also be an apartment block between 2-3 storeys high, with 12 one bed apartments, and 7 two bed apartments.

The site is within the Blarney Architectural Conservation Area, meaning that developments must fit suitably into the already existing built heritage in the area.

The project was given the go ahead at Monday's Cork City Council meeting.

Chair of the North-West Local Area Committee, Cllr Damien Boylan said the development was a “wonderful thing for Blarney”.

“The addition of the library and the creche, and the 138 houses that will breathe new life into that area, an area which has sat like a terrible sight in the middle of Blarney for so long.

“I’m glad that someone took the bull by the horns and is actually going to do something with it,” he said.

The Blarney Park Hotel closed in 2007. Plans for an 80-bed hotel, along with a supermarket, café, office block, and commercial building on the site were lodged in 2020, but were refused by Cork City Council.

Permission was eventually granted by An Bord Pleanála on appeal in 2021.

However, that decision was overturned after an appeal to the High Court by the operators of Blarney Castle in 2022. The site has remained derelict since then.

The planned development was originally advertised on 20 March 2026. The plans received 15 submissions and observations from members of the public.

These noted a number of concerns, including the suitability of the development to the Blarney Architectural Conservation Area, the impact it may have on public infrastructure including roads and water, and a request that a proposed greenway be delivered as part of the development.

This article was produced with the support of the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme funded by Coimisiún na Meán.