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New university campus calls for St Finan’s site

By Sean Moriarty

The Mayor of Killarney, Michael Gleeson is calling for the former St Finan’s Hospital to be developed into a campus of the newly formed Munster Technological University.

Earlier this week the Institute Technology in Tralee and Cork Institute of Technology announced their amalgamation to form the new university.

From January 2021 Tralee will become a university town.

The mayor says the former hospital site, a landmark and historic building which was constructed in 1852, is the ideal location to locate a satellite campus of the new university as it sits roughly midway between the two main colleges.

Mayor Gleeson has been a long-time campaigner on behalf of the hospital and always said he would not like it to be sold to private bidders – an event that seemed inevitable until this week.

He is calling for the site’s owner, the HSE, and the Department of Education (along with management of the new university) to sit down and trash out a deal to keep the hospital in public ownership.

“It is the perfect place for distant learning, something that we will become the new norm and something that is already being done by the great universities of the world.”

Killarney has a great tradition in offering third-level training courses to Kerry students, especially those who wanted to follow a career in the tourism and hospitality sectors.

The former Torc Great Southern Hotel, the site of the current cinema development used to be converted into a training centre during the winter months.

Mayor Gleeson gave an example of how University College Cork failed to secure nearby hospital property in Cork City and now that it is expanding there is a degree of regret that these properties were not purchased when they came on the market.

“St Finan’s is a building of huge historical and architectural importance since its construction in 1852,” he added. ”Both [college] bodies need to sit down together and engage with the HSE on a national level, UCC now regrets the loss of the nearby hospital. St Finan’s is an ideal place and should not be left fall into private hands – or worse – dereliction.”

Munster Technological University will be the first regional technological university in Ireland.