Investors looking for an opportunity to develop a city centre hotel in a popular tourist city may be interested in the sale of a site at the historic Abbey Quarter in Kilkenny, which is being brought to market at a guide price of €1.5 million.
The new Abbey Quarter is in an area immediately adjoining the core of Kilkenny city centre, and occupies an extensive stretch of the west bank of the river Nore. Development plans for the area will see the construction of a mixed-use urban quarter including office, residential, hotel, local retail and education facilities.
The location of the 1,420sq m site, just off Kilkenny’s Medieval Mile, is a short stroll from Kilkenny Castle, St Canice’s Cathedral and all other city-centre visitor attractions. It is being offered on a subject-to-planning basis.
A report from CBRE from earlier this year noted that hotel assets were becoming increasingly important to institutional investors and private equity groups, given the lack of liquidity in the office and residential sectors. Further, it argued that the investment case around Irish hotels is “particularly strong” due to a number of factors including the strong trading performance of hotels; the high inflationary environment; the shift away from traditional core sectors; the imbalance between supply and demand in living sector properties; and the projected growth in air travel.
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This site was originally settled in the 13th century by Franciscan monks who established St Francis Abbey. The monks brewed ales here long before John Smithwick established his brewery in the early 1700s. It continued to operate as a brewery for 300 years until it was closed in 2014.
St Francis Abbey, a National Monument, still stands on the site today as a reminder of its rich history. Following the closure of the brewery, the site was purchased by Kilkenny County Council with a view to job creation and the provision of public amenity areas on the site. Following extensive public consultation, a master plan was adopted to guide development of the former brewery site and adjacent lands. In recent years Kilkenny County Council has entered into a partnership with the National Treasury Management Agency (Kilkenny Abbey Quarter Development Partnership), for the development of the building plots on the former brewery site.
So far, the partnership has successfully redeveloped the former Brewhouse as a Grade A office building. In addition to the development of the award-winning Riverside Gardens, a new public park, Kilkenny County Council has also redeveloped the former Mayfair ballroom on the site as the new city library. These projects have marked a successful start to the redevelopment of the former brewery site, bringing life and vibrancy to the Abbey Quarter.
Part of the development will see the creation of a new Urban Street, which will be the “spine” of the Abbey Quarter, linking St Francis Bridge and Bateman Quay, with priority being given to pedestrians and cyclists. Construction of this new street is due to commence before the end of the year, with the project also involving the development of a one-hectare urban park centred on the upstanding remains of St Francis Abbey.
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