Plans have been submitted to the county council for a major revamp of the Galway Bay Resort in Oranmore which will reopen and expand the old hotel.
Connacht Accommodation Ltd are seeking planning permission for alterations to the existing hotel building which will include converting apartment living rooms to additional hotel bedrooms.
This will see the number of guest bedrooms at the hotel increase from the current number of 92 to 145 rooms.
In addition, a new extension will be built containing a bar and leisure centre, which will consist of a 20m swimming pool, gym, and a spa.
An internal link will also be constructed to the existing golf club building on two levels.
The hotel was first granted planning permission in 1995, and after being built operated until 2007 when it shut down.
“The applicants now wish to bring the derelict building back into use by reopening the hotel, with the addition of new facilities, including a leisure centre, which will ensure its long term survival,” the application states.
This development will also provide “an economic stimulus to the area” the application suggests, working in tandem with the Galway Bay Resort Golf Club.
The link with Galway Bay Resort ensures that “any shortfall in parking in the car park directly in front of the hotel will be supplemented by the larger parking facilities adjacent to the golf club building”.
The hotel car park has 137 parking spaces, less than the 145 spaces required at one space per bedroom, but the golf club contains 198 spaces, bringing the total on site to 335 parking spaces.
The new extension was designed to be contemporary in appearance, contrasting with the existing building and golf club.
An Appropriate Assessment Screening Report and landscaping proposals were submitted with this planning application.
Galway County Council is due to make a ruling on this planning application by February 2 of next year.
