Fiona Gribben | News Editor
Work on the re-development of the former Montrose Hotel close to UCD into student accommodation has been delayed, University College Dublin’s Students’ Union (UCDSU) has confirmed.
A number of rooms in the complex will not be ready until October, two months after construction at the site was meant to finish.
Speaking to The University Times, UCDSU President Feargal Hynes said the union was told towards the end of last week that 59 of the 166 rooms in the complex would not completed by the start of term.
The delay is expected to affect 20 students, as students were already aware that 39 rooms would be completed by early September.
“The company understands the situation facing students at this time,” Hynes said. “They have been very attentive to anyone affected.
Obviously, alternative student accommodation is difficult to come by at this point, so people will be booked into hotels if needs be which the company will pay for and the rent will not be charged for the length it takes to complete the work.”
According to the President of UCDSU, the accommodation crisis impacting Trinity College students is equally severe in the south-east of the city.
“It is a colossal problem, there is a genuine lack of accommodation out there and this shortage is driving up rent to an extortionate amount.
The issue is providing a genuine barrier to third level education in the capital,” Hynes said.
The €22.5 million project is the first Irish development of Ziggurat Student Living, a specialist student accommodation provider well-established in the UK.
Construction began earlier this year to convert the former hotel, located about 1km from the entrance to RTÉ and a short walk from the UCD campus which will consist of 192 en-suite bedrooms.
The 26 remaining rooms are not expected to be completed this side of Christmas however there is already a waiting list of 170.
Its developers say it will offer “three- to four-star hotel-standard” accommodation to its residents with a proposed entry-level price of €175 per week, rising to €230 for a superior room, €235 for a top room floor and €265 for a penthouse room.
The entry-price level of €700 was reached following consultation with the UCD accommodation office and is based on a 42-week-term and inclusive of utilities, broadband internet and contents insurance.
The rooms will be clustered into apartments consisting of between five and eight bedrooms, each of which will have a communal kitchen and dining area and a separate living room.
The property will have 24-hour security, an on-site management team and car parking and bicycle facilities.
“It is extortionately expensive; however the waiting list shows that the demand is there which is worrying.
Private developers can get away with charging these sums making it very difficult to call for a rent cap,” Hynes added.
