A proposal by U2 singer Bono to create ‘ Europe's most spectacular hotel’ has produced a clash between modernisers and traditionalists in Dublin. The Independent

Bono has put forward plans designed by Lord Foster for a dramatic structure with a spaceship-shaped glass dome at the summit of an atrium extending from the basement to the rooftop.

The plans involve a redesign and expansion of the Clarence Hotel, which is owned by Bono and U2's guitarist, the Edge, on the bank of the river Liffey and adjoining the busy Temple Bar district.

However, objections have been raised by An Taisce, the Irish equivalent of the National Trust and the country's most influential environmental authority, and by the Irish Georgian Society, which argues the plans would dwarf neighbouring buildings and dominate the area.

Bono's plans involve taking over neighbouring Georgian structures and demolishing all but their facades.

An Taisce says the plan is ‘entirely inappropriate’, suggesting that it would be more suitable elsewhere. It declared: ‘It is the sort of scheme which could be developed with advantage on an unconstrained development site, particularly in the docklands.’