The Chief Executive of Dublin City Council (DCC) is being urged to engage with the developers who have been appointed to carry out repair work at a hotel in Ballymun, to ensure there will be no delay in opening the premises.

Fianna Fail TD Cllr Paul MacAuliffe made the call and also said the council must support the firm at the centre of the work on the Metro Hotel.

Cllr McAuliffe said: "Following the blaze which engulfed the premises in March, it is deeply upsetting that the hotel's management felt they had no other alternative but to lay off the staff employed, manyof which lived locally.

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"I am fearful that the hotel could potentially be left idle for longer than the 12 months which have been planned for remedial works to be carried out. This premises is a landmark building in Ballymun and should it be left go into disrepair, it would be a scar on the otherwise improving landscape in our area.

"Another concern held locally is that should any difficulties or major delays arise in fully repairing the building, its current derelict state would be a barrier to attracting broader investment in the 31 development sites set out in the Ballymun Local Area Plan.

"We must offer every support we can to re-secure the local jobs lost and make sure that the closure is temporary and that it will not exceed the 12 months planned."

(CD)