Whitbread Selling Property in Centre of Bristol, England

(26/04/23)  Whitbread is selling the site of its Premier Inn hotel at St James Barton roundabout in Bristol city centre, England.

The existing 20-storey building, originally built as an office in 1972 by Avon County Council, could be replaced with two new contemporary buildings for co-living housing and student accommodation.

If approved, the plans would also reveal the Grade 1 listed St James’ Priory currently obscured by the hotel.

Whitbread currently has four trading hotels in Bristol city centre, including at Lewins Mead which serves the same catchment area as the old Haymarket Premier Inn which will remain open for now.

Whitbread has decided to sell the Haymarket Premier Inn in Bristol so that the old building can be redeveloped.

The company says it has made the decision to sell the site for redevelopment given the age of the building and the cost of bringing it up to current Premier Inn brand standards.

Despite the sale, Whitbread continues to look for new Premier Inn locations in the Harbourside and Temple Quarter areas of Bristol city centre.

“The Premier Inn at Haymarket is at the end of its life. Though the location is great the current building does not provide the high brand standards our customers expect of us, and it needs substantial investment. We also have a much newer Premier Inn at Lewins Mead which is a short walk from the Haymarket hotel and serves the same catchment,” said Richard Pearson, Development Manager for Whitbread. “Redeveloping the site presents an opportunity to realise the true potential of the gateway location for the city, whilst generating funds to reinvest in our network modern and energy efficient hotels in Bristol and elsewhere. The sale is part of our strategy of ensuring our hotel offer is of the highest quality and in the very best locations for our customers.”

Whitbread's development partner Olympian Homes has appointed acclaimed architect Hodder & Partners, which has won more than 50 national design awards, to create a striking scheme for the prominent 0.3 hectare site.

Two buildings form the proposed scheme: a 28-storey student accommodation building with 445 student beds; and an 18-storey co-living building with 136 bedrooms.

The proposals will include a new ground floor café which would open onto both the bus/coach station and the roundabout, helping create an attractive and active public realm.

It is expected to be a low or zero car parking scheme, given its city centre location immediately adjacent to Bristol bus and coach station and 20 per cent of the co-living homes would be 'affordable'.

The pedestrian connection between Bearpit, St James’ Park and the bus and coach station, currently quite a hostile and unwelcoming route, would also be made safer and more attractive.

The draft designs are expected to be unveiled in the coming weeks as part of a community consultation.

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