Caretaking role at Ten Square for Dalata
Pat McCann, chief executive of the Dublin-based Dalata Hotel Group, has confirmed to LCN that his company is looking after Belfast hotel, Ten Square, on behalf of administrators who were called into the venue early this month.
Dalata, which is currently in a phase of aggressive expansion, is known to be interested in establishing a permanent presence in Belfast, although Mr. McCann was unable to say whether progress had been made on that front since the group is currently in its closed period.
Referring to Ten Square, Mr. McCann said:
“It’s early days yet and nothing has been decided on its future. However, there will be no job losses and our objective is to ensure the business continues to grow as this will secure jobs there for the future.”
The popular four-star venue in the centre of Belfast went into administration in late January and administrators, EY, were appointed to run the business.
The 23-bedroom hotel was sold to property developer, John Miskelly, in 2008 by its former owners Nicholas and Paul Hill, who also own the Galgorm Resort and Spa near Ballymena. At the time, the deal was said to be worth around £10m. But the last set of accounts filed for Ten Square in 2013 showed a loss of £161,000.
The caretaking role at Ten Square will suit the Dublin group’s ambitions in Belfast. Dalata – now Ireland’s largest hotel group – has acquired a number of properties all over the island of Ireland in recent months, including the former Tower Hotel in Londonderry, which it has since re-branded under its Maldron banner. In December, it spent €10.5m to acquire the Pillo Hotel in Galway.
