Commercial and residential estate agency Savills Ireland has estimated that hotel development in Dublin will decline by as much as 32% due to the COVID-19 crisis.
The Irish Times quotes Savills hotel division director Tom Barrett as saying, "Just a few weeks ago, before the current restrictions, Savills visited Dublin hotel construction sites to observe physical progress. Based on these visits - and our own analysis - we expect hoteliers, developers and investors will complete most projects that have commenced construction, although the delivery and opening dates will slip."
Talking about the hotel bedroom stock that was due to be completed between now and 2022 before the COVID-19 crisis, Savills said that the "probability of opening is greatest for hotels that are already significantly completed, with a greater risk of delay and repurposing for sites that have not commenced, or are in the very early phase of development".
According to Savills, 90% of the new hotels that were scheduled to be completed in 2020 before the coronavirus pandemic had their top floor or full facades and glazing in place before COVID-19 restrictions were expanded to include the closure of construction sites. However, Savills anticipates that the completion dates for these hotels will be pushed back to next year if the restrictions on construction work are extended.
2021 And 2022
Savills believes that the chances of hotel projects scheduled to be completed in 2021 being discontinued are currently low.
Speaking about projects due for completion in 2022, the estate agency said, "The hotels which we forecast might open in 2022 are at early stages of construction, therefore Savills has significantly reduced its overall forecast for that year."
Outside Of Dublin
Commenting on hotel development projects outside of Dublin, Savills said, "With a reduced development forecast for Dublin hotels, we believe new hotel development in Cork, Galway, Limerick and regional Ireland will be more difficult to deliver in the coming years."
© 2020 Hospitality Ireland – your source for the latest industry news. Article by Dave Simpson. Click subscribe to sign up for the Hospitality Ireland print edition.
