NORTH YORKSHIRE hotel operator Principal Hayley Group has bought a prominent Liverpool building and plans to create the city’s first five-star hotel.
The Harrogate-based group, which includes The Met in Leeds and The Royal York Hotel among its portfolio of 47 hotels and conference centres, will invest £50m to transform the Martins Bank building into a 227-room luxury hotel.
The scheme will create 200 long-term and 350 construction jobs over the next two years.
The company is to convert the Grade II-listed property in the city’s business district into a luxury hotel with a spa, bar and fine dining restaurant. Work will start on the project this year with a potential opening in late 2017 or early 2018.
The Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson said the scheme would be a landmark development for the city and was a signal of its growing reputation as a global tourist destination and as a centre for exhibitions and conventions.
Principal Hayley chief executive Tony Troy said the acquisition gave them an important presence in the heart of Liverpool, where there was clear demand for a full service luxury hotel.
He said it was the city’s recent renaissance and its record in attracting business and leisure visitors which was making their investment possible and they were pleased to be working with a number of key city departments on the project.
Castlewood Securities, which has owned the Martin’s Bank building for 20 years, has been acquired by Principal Hayley Group Hotels in the deal.
Castlewood has obtained full planning and listed building consent for the proposed development.
Bernard Byrne, chief executive of Castlewood Securities, said: “Principal Hayley has a proven track record of working with important heritage buildings to deliver such projects. This investment of nearly £50m will create over 200 long term jobs as well as secure the future of one of Liverpool’s most treasured buildings.”
The acquisition follows a wider £100m strategic repositioning of Principal Hayley Group’s city-centre properties.
The Royal York Hotel in York and The George Hotel in Edinburgh have both recently reopened following extensive renovations that honoured the histories of the two properties while adding state-of-the-art amenities.
An additional multi-million-pound investment is planned for Principal Hayley Group’s manor-house conference properties in 2016.
