Distinctive city centre building could be transformed into boutique hotel
Liverpool-based developer Promenade Estates has submitted a planning application to convert its listed Queen Square headquarters in to a 43-bed boutique hotel.
The Waterhouse-designed building was the regional headquarters for Pearl Assurance and overlooks St John’s Gardens and St George’s Hall.
It also adjoins the city’s successful Marriot Hotel, which Promenade developed in the mid-90s.
“It’s the perfect location for a high-quality boutique offering,” said Promenade chairman Peter Hynd.
“Those who visit the city for its architecture and culture will love the Alfred Waterhouse link and the fact that the Walker Art Gallery is over the road.”
The development, if granted permission, would be the fifth hotel in the region developed by the Promenade team.
“We understand the regional hotel market and also the operational issues, having been active investors in all our hotel properties,” explained Mr Hynd.
The popular Dr Duncan’s pub on the ground floor would be unaffected by the development, which forms the northernmost part of the 660,000 sq ft jigsaw that was the redevelopment of Queen Square.
The building’s original refurbishment was undertaken by the Liverpool studio of Falconer Chester Hall (FCH), which has been retained to design the new hotel.
Alastair Shepherd from FCH said: “We know the building intimately and it’s been an enjoyable challenge re-casting it for hotel use. It’s elegant and contemporary and we’ll be sharing our design in due course.”
The award-winning mixed-use Queen Square development is acknowledged as having transformed Liverpool’s appeal to occupiers and institutional investors in the late 90s, ultimately leading to the hugely successful Liverpool One project.
The proposed redevelopment follows a spate of recent disposals by Promenade, including the fully-let Marine Point development in New Brighton to Aprirose, the Ramada Plaza leisure scheme in Southport to Bliss Estates, and a major waterfront residential scheme overlooking Liverpool’s Albert Dock to Vista Fund.
“We are putting our resources to good use and are actively seeking regeneration and redevelopment opportunities across the North West,” said Promenade managing director Daniel Hynd.
Curtins is engineer on the project. In addition to design, FCH is managing the planning application.
