100m plan for Killarney

A dramatic viewing tower and a large eight-screen cinema as well as a courthouse will be among the key features of plans for a 100 million development on the former Great Southern Hotel lands alongside Killarney railway station. The planned development is seen as a major vote of confidence in the Kerry town. The plans by local businessmen for the 14-acre site of Station Square were unveiled yesterday. They include up to 1,200 underground car spaces and the relocation of a small public cultural centre. The current well-known conference facilities, along with the spa and leisure club at the Malton Hotel, the former Great Southern, will also be replaced. The 300-foot viewing tower, which will overlook the town, will be just under the height of Killarney’s current tallest building, the spire of St Mary’s Cathedral. It is intended that the tower will host press launches and other events, which is in line with consultants’ recommendations made for Killarney in 2005. The design is being undertaken by international architects HKR “to complement the garden setting of the Malton and Park hotels”, local hotelier Padraig Treacy, who has been one of the key drivers of the project, said yesterday.

The Irish Times