Planning permission refused for hotel development on the site of the Cobblestone

Good news for the iconic Dublin 7 pub.

The redevelopment plan which would have seen a hotel built around one of Ireland's most beloved traditional music pubs has been refused by Dublin City Council. In October of this year, the news emerged of Marron Estates plan to construct a nine-storey hotel on the site of the Cobblestone in Smithfield. According to the Irish Times, the pub would have been retained as part of the proposed development as it's a protected structure, but the outdoor area and the pub’s Backroom venue would have been demolished. The redevelopment plan was met with huge backlash. An online petition entitled Save The Cobblestone gained almost 35,000 signatures, with several politicians and Irish cultural figures speaking out in support of the pub. https://www.instagram.com/tv/CVdrn3Oh0zr/ Today, Dublin City Council have officially refused planning permission for the proposed hotel, citing a number of reasons for the decision. The council have said the proposed nine storey hotel would be “overbearing and significantly out of scale and character with the prevailing architectural context” and could potentially result in “substantial over-development of this highly sensitive site”. https://twitter.com/newschambers/status/1465276211312185348?s=20 The news has been welcomed by Irish TDs and members of the public alike, with "Cobblestone" trending on Twitter this afternoon. https://twitter.com/neasa_neasa/status/1465267074528387075?s=20 https://twitter.com/DublinIsDying/status/1465289869685633030?s=20 https://twitter.com/Ceannabhain/status/1465272439697559559?s=20 A positive result for Dublin's cultural landscape! Header image via Instagram/cobblestonepubdublin READ NEXT: 10 spots in Dublin to get a festive mince pie!