A €25 million redevelopment of the Ormond Hotel on Dublin's Liffey quays is expected to complete by the first quarter of 2020.
The hotel, which features in James Joyce’s Ulysses, was bought by Monteco Holdings for €2.5m.
The landmark building, which has been closed for more than 10 years, was opened in 1900 and featured "the Sirens" chapter in James Joyce's Ulysees. Computer generated photographs show the interior aseing inspired by avant garde and bohemian artistic movements of the 1920's, according to the company behind the design.
AvroKO, a design and concept company based in New York, said it is revitalising the heritage of the building.
"In order to pay homage to this historic site, we channelled design cues from the origin of the hotel dating back to the late 19th century, while following Joyce's sense of modernism," said Adam Farmerie, the company's principal.
The hotel was bought by developer Bernard McNamara in 2006 for €17 million, a year after it closed.
He put it on the market in 2009 with a price tag of €7 million, but it was subsequently bought for less than €2.5 million, by Monteco Holdings.
In 2013, Monteco applied for permission to demolish the Victorian hotel and replace it with a 170-bedroom, six-storey hotel.
Dublin City Council refused permission, as did An Bord Pleanála on appeal. The company put together a new plan for a five-storey hotel with 120 bedrooms, twice the number of bedrooms as the old hotel. It was granted permission in the middle of 2017.
It’s expected that the Ormond will employ 90 staff when operational while up to 250 people will be employed during the construction phase.
* This article was corrected on September 10th
