Go-ahead for Athlone Travel Lodge development

Westmeath County Council has granted planning permission for the development of a 41-bedroom Travel Lodge hotel in Athlone. The proposed development is to be situated at a site across from Dan's Tavern in Garrankesh. The council attached 21 conditions to its award of planning permission for the project. The developer, Eamon Leahy, stated that the hotel will be the only travel lodge of its kind between Galway and Dublin. The proposed development is to involve the demolition of an existing dwelling and garage to construct a 41-bedroom Travel Lodge on four floors along with provision for car parking. Mr Leahy's initial planning application for the hotel was turned down by the council in May 2009. At that stage the local authority said the proposed hotel "would appear incongruent and unduly prominent at this location." However Mr Leahy submitted what he described as a "significantly revised" planning application for the hotel in March of this year. The council requested further information from the developer in May before recently publishing its decision to approve conditional planning permission for the facility.