High Court dispute over €25m James Street hotel settled

A dispute over plans to develop a €25 million hotel in Dublin’s James Street has been resolved.

The site lies on a stepped lane called Cromwell’s Quarters joining James Street to Bow Lane West.

Tathony Holdings, the owners of Tathony House, which is on the lane, first brought High Court proceedings in 2018 claiming a planned new hotel would interfere with its light. Those proceedings, which were against the previous owners, were settled.

The site was then sold to a company called Amhola James Street Ltd, which plans to develop an international hotel at a cost of €25 million.

Amhola submitted a new planning application which was refused by Dublin City Council.

Amhola lodged an appeal, but in the meantime, last January, its contractors moved to carry out what were described as tidying up works of the site. It claimed it could do so on the basis of the previous 2018 permission.

Tathony brought new proceedings again over how its light would be affected. Then on March 22nd An Bord Pleanála granted permission for the revised plan which met Tathony’s concerns over light.

The new High Court proceedings were then settled.

However, a row remained over who should pay the costs of Tathony’s case against Amhola. Tathony argued Amhola should pay all costs because it had no choice but to bring the case over Amhola’s action in moving on foot of the disputed 2018 permission. Amhola said there should be no order as to costs.

On Monday, Mr Justice Denis McDonald ordered that Tathony was entitled to 75 per cent of its costs, to be adjudicated on in default of agreement.