LIVE: Locals object as Tipp hotel used for asylum seekers plans to add 60 more bedrooms

The owners of the former Racket Hall Hotel in Roscrea intend to apply for planning permission to create an extension on the building which includes a kitchen and 60 bedrooms.

Swiftcastle Ltd, the owners of the former hotel which closed to the public last year amid protests and the deployment of the An Garda Síochána's riot officers, plan to apply for alterations to the existing Direct Provision Accommodation Centre which has over 40 bedrooms.

The development will consist of a single-storey kitchen building and a three-storey bedroom wing to the side of the existing building, which is located on Roscrea's Old Dublin Road and close to Roscrea Golf Club.

News of the plans prompted debate among local people in Roscrea last week, where many continue to hope the hotel may return to the public hospitality business.

Contributing to the debate on social media, many local people said they plan to object to the development and criticised the government for not providing figures to local representatives on how many people are living in emergency accommodation in Roscrea.

Roscrea-based councillor and member of the Lowry Team of Independents, Shane Lee, said he believes greed is motivating the providers of some emergency accommodation in the area.

Racket Hall, the landmark premises which was the town's only open hotel, closed to the public abruptly in January of 2024 when the owners chose to repurpose their asset.

Protesters kept a presence at the gates of the building for ten weeks last year and a public march, which attracted over 2,000 participants, was held through the town centre and attracted national and international media coverage as Roscrea was thrust onto the frontlines of the debate surrounding immigration.