THE Lusitania Museum at the Old Head of Kinsale is set for a major expansion with plans for a new L-shaped museum as well as an exhibition space, gift shop, café and new parking facilities.
The Old Head Signal Tower Heritage CLG is seeking permission from Cork County Council for the construction of a single storey L-shaped museum on a site of the existing waste water treatment plant, which they are seeking to demolish.
This new museum will also include visitor bathrooms, staff facilities, lift, plant and storeroom.
The developers are also seeking alterations to the existing vehicular entrance, relocation of parking and the provision of new- car parking. The installation of a new wastewater treatment plant is also in the planning application, as well as associated landscaping and ancillary site development works.
The planning application notes that the Old Head Signal Tower at Ballymackean is a recorded protected structure and this application does not involve any work to the tower.
The applicant said the proposed development aims to ensure the continued and improved use of the site as the Lusitania Museum and Memorial Garden.
‘This design approach aims to balance the demand for enhanced visitor experiences while integrating the historical significance of the signal tower,’ they said.
‘The successful implementation of the new Lusitania Museum is expected to enhance Cork’s reputation as a leading national and international tourism destination.’
The site is significant as it represents the closest point of land to the final resting place of the RMS Lusitania, which was torpedoed by a German U-boat on May 7th 1915, with the loss of 1,201 lives.
The former owner of the wreck, Gregg Bemis, signed over the Lusitania wreck and its artefacts to the Lusitania Museum/ Old Head Signal Tower Heritage CLG in May 2019 in a move that was very well welcomed by the group at the time.
