Hotelier Fitzpatrick, 72, dies

Paddy Fitzpatrick, one of Ireland’s most successful hoteliers, died Aug. 16 aged 72 after a brief illness.

Fitzpatrick, well-known in the Irish world as one of Ireland’s most successful hoteliers, owned the Fitzpatrick hotels in Manhattan and Chicago.

He started work at the Gresham Hotel at age 17, and at his death was chairman of Fitzpatrick Hotel Group, Mastertone Limited, Timesharing Ireland Limited, and Castle Transport and Marketing Services.

Fitzpatrick climbed the ranks rapidly, and moved on to manage the Old Ground Hotel in Ennis and later the Stafford-owned Talbot Hotel in Wexford.

In his late 30s, he moved back to Dublin, where he managed the Doyle group of hotels, overseeing the opening of the Skylon and the Tara Towers.

He and his late wife, Eithne, opened their first hotel in Dublin in 1971, and expanded the family business with the acquisition of five more properties in both Ireland and the U.S., including two in Manhattan. Just over a year before his passing, Fitzpatrick bought a new hotel in Chicago for over $27 million.

A man closely associated with tourism and the Irish hotel industry, Fitzpatrick served as president of the National Tourism Council and the Wexford Chamber of Commerce. He also served a two-year term as president of Dun Laoghaire Rathdown Chamber of Commerce. He was a founder member of Dun Laoghaire Rathdown Tourist Company, where he served as president for two years and remained on as a director and council member. Fitzpatrick was also a member of the Dublin Street Commissioners and the Tourism Task Force. In 2001, he was inducted in the Hall of Fame of Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International.

Fitzpatrick is survived by his second wife, Nora, his five children, John, Eithne, Paul, Patrick, Tony, his stepson David, his sisters and seven grandchildren.

Donations may be sent to Dr. David Fennelly, Cancer Research Fund, St. Vincent’s Hospital, Dublin 4, Ireland.