The Railway Hotel, Enniskillen RMGFH55
A CHAIN BUDGET HOTEL could soon be on its way to Enniskillen, with the former site of the Railway Hotel mooted as a possible location. The owner of the Railway Hotel, Kesh property developer David Mahon told the Herald this week that enquiries had been made about the site from a “budget hotel type”, of the Premier Inn and Travelodge variety. If it were to come to pass the hotel would be the first of its kind in the county.
Mr Mahon acquired the Railway Hotel and adjoining Ritz Cinema back in August, but no work has yet been started on either site and the hotel has remained closed.
Speaking this week the Kesh man explained that nothing had yet been finalised on either site.
“There’s nothing confirmed yet, there’s different people enquiring about it, but nothing’s happened yet on it. Somebody’s looking to buy the hotel part of it off me separately, a budget hotel type, so we shall see about that. I’d be looking at developing the site where the cinema was.”
He continued: “I’d say we’ll know more in the next couple of months, these things take time. I’m in negotiations at the minute and something will happen as it is a good enough site.”
Should a major International hotel chain come into Enniskillen Mr Mahon believes it would boost the town. “It can only help,” he added.
The Railway Hotel had been in existence for 130 years, while the Ritz cinema, opened in 1954, closed its doors in 1992. Before it closed in August, the ‘Railway’ was jointly owned by two business partners, James Crozier and Owen McKenna who retired.
The partners had run the ‘Railway’ for the previous 16 years, having acquired it from Peter and Imelda Byrne who were its owners from 1976.
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