Compulsory purchase bid for Galway’s Shannon Oaks Hotel divides councillors as vote deferred
Calls for a notorious Galway hotel to come under local authority control and demolished have raised wider concerns among councillors about how similar properties will be treated.
The Shannon Oaks Hotel in Portumna has remained closed for 15 years, with Galway County councillors now calling for it to be deemed derelict and acquired through a compulsory purchase order (CPO).
Galway County Councillor Jimmy McClearn tabled a motion at the council’s March meeting regarding the hotel, citing the absence of any refurbishment plans from its owners, the Comer brothers.
He said the loss of the hotel to the region is “immeasurable”, adding that the council’s lack of intervention suggests it is “shying away from the Comer brothers”.
Luke and Barry Comer, development portfolio giants, acquired the hotel in 2015, four years after it was destroyed in a fire in 2011 that rendered the building unusable. In 2020, the site was listed under a refurbishment planning permission but works were never carried out. Then in 2023, the hotel was placed on Derelict Sites Register.
Shortly afterwards, Galway County Council found that the hotel did not qualify as a derelict site and it was removed from the list.
Cllr McClearn said referring to the Shannon Oaks as a hotel is “farcical” given that it has lain dormant with no indication of redevelopment.
However, some councillors questioned whether acquiring the site would set a precedent for other long-abandoned buildings.
“If you start the ball rolling on this then where do you stop?” Councillor Cillian Keane said. “It would be an attempt to deal with a symptom of the problem.”
Purchasing the site through a compulsory purchase order would be complex, requiring engagement with the Comer brothers and likely leading to court proceedings.
Chief Executive Liam Conneally said such a move would only be considered as an “end of the road” measure, as CPO powers under derelict sites legislation are typically used only after all engagement with the owner has failed.
Mr Conneally suggested the council should “bottom out” all other options and pursue legal advice before proceeding with a CPO, urging councillors to defer a vote on the matter.
However, Cllr McClearn insisted on the urgency of the issue, saying he wants to begin the CPO process immediately and “get the Comer brothers off the site and demo the area” after 15-years of dormancy.
A progress report on the status of the potential CPO is expected to come before the council at its April meeting, as management continues to examine the process.