Galway families lose homes in advance of hotel sale

Families face losing their homes as they are moved out of apartments at the rear of the burned out Shannon Oaks Hotel in Portumna – so that it can be sold without any occupants on site.

Some of those currently living in the apartments either work locally or are on social welfare – but the move has also triggered a rental crisis in the Galway town.

The hotel itself burned down four years ago and Portumna – minus a major tourism facility – has suffered financially as a result.

The facility itself has been in receivership for some time. And part of the hotel’s 15 acre site includes one and two bedroom apartments which have been rented out by the receivers of the property.

However, they are now been told that they have to find alternative accommodation as there are expectations that a sale of the hotel may not be too far away.

Aengus Burns of receivers Grant Thornton said that they hoped to complete a sale before the end of the year – and he confirmed that they had a number of interested parties in the hotel.

Mr Burns would not be drawn, however, on whether or not it would be retained as a hotel – although he did say that some of the interested parties were anxious to provide accommodation on the site.

See full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune.