Local TDs, residents reject plan to convert Leitrim Marina Hotel into IPAS centre

Local TDs dismissed the likelihood that a hotel in Leitrim Village would be transformed into an asylum-seeker centre during a meeting held at St. Joseph's Centre on February 19.

The Department of Integration had been offered the Leitrim Marina Hotel for international protection applicants and was considering the proposal. However, over 300 local residents attended the public meeting to voice their concerns.

Sinn Féin TD Martin Kenny noted that the hotel can house 61 people, raising worries that Leitrim Village—with no Garda station, no chemist, only one shop, four pubs, and a single, run-down playground—might be overwhelmed.

Councillor Enda Stenson expressed his frustration over the lack of public consultation. “This is a big decision for the community, and yet, there’s been no public consultation,” he said. Stenson emphasized that while the hotel had briefly accommodated Ukrainian refugees, it was originally intended as a tourism asset for the village—a popular destination due to its scenic beauty and connection to the Shannon-Erne Waterway. “Leitrim Village is one of the top tourist hotspots in the county, and turning this hotel into a refugee centre could effectively end tourism here,” he warned.

Stenson also stressed that converting the hotel into a long-term IPAS centre would permanently change its role. “Once this becomes a refugee centre, it will never go back to being a hotel again,” he noted, adding that the decision-making process lacked transparency and community involvement—a pattern seen in other towns.

Residents were further troubled by reports that the Marina Hotel is owned by the same group that runs the Bush Hotel in Carrick-on-Shannon. “We’ve done our bit as a county, but we shouldn’t see every tourist facility in Leitrim turned into a refugee centre,” Stenson argued.

TD Frank Feighan echoed these concerns, calling the plan “a long shot” due to regulations for small villages and the complicated nature of the process.

At the meeting, locals demanded answers and pledged to raise the issue at the next council meeting, insisting that the community deserves transparency and a say in its future. As the debate continues, residents remain determined to keep the hotel as a key tourism asset for Leitrim Village.

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TD Frank Feighan met with concerned locals in Leitrim Village on Feb. 24.