April: Business is booming - new Tirlán, Abbott buildings and plans for hotel

ABOVE: At the official opening of Tirlán’s new headquarters and collaborative hub at Abbey Quarter, Kilkenny were Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment Simon Coveney TD who officiated at the opening with Tirlán Office Facilities Manager Mary Banks; Tirlán Chief Executive Jim Bergin and Tirlán Chairman John Murphy. They’re pictured with a painting of the site by Kilkenny artist Roger O’Neill, depicting the vibrancy of the quarter Picture: Dylan Vaughan

April began with an announcement that planning permission had been sought to turn a prominent Kilkenny landmark into a hotel.

Salway Limited submitted plans to Kilkenny County Council to develop Hebron House on the outskirts of Kilkenny City.
The development is set to comprise a hotel, leisure and conference complex with 136 bedrooms, restaurant, bars, kitchen, meeting rooms and conference centre, a swimming pool, leisure centre and fitness suite.

The news wasn’t so good for private tenants in Kilkenny as a report from the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) revealed there had been 64 eviction notices issued in the last three months of 2022. The Kilkenny People reported there were zero rental properties advertised in Kilkenny City on property website Daft.ie and only 12 across the entire county.

Figures from the Department of Housing showed a slight drop in the number of people accessing emergency accommodation in Kilkenny from January to February of this year.

Thirty-four people were accessing emergency accommodation in Kilkenny in February, compared to 37 in the previous month.
One of the most advanced work spaces in Ireland was opened in the Abbey Quarter at the heart of Kilkenny City. The new

Tirlán collaboration hub was officially opened by Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Simon Coveney.
The hub has a footfall of more than 650 employees a week, with state-of-the-art facilities and meeting rooms available for collaboration by those working across the 11 Tirlán processing facilities and 52 agri-branches throughout Ireland.