Businessman snaps up second landmark city centre building in six months

An East Midlands entrepreneur has swooped for a second Lincoln city centre property in less than a year.

The Judge’s Lodgings, an iconic and historic property in the centre of Lincoln, has been bought by businessman Andrew Long following his recent purchase of the adjacent White Hart Hotel.

TSP Developments (part of Andrew’s Travel Sector Property Group) has acquired a 999-year “virtual freehold” interest in the Judge’s Lodgings from Lincolnshire County Council.

Coleby-based businessman and chartered surveyor Long acquired the White Hart Hotel and the site of the White Hart Garages and car park in July this summer. Proposals for the hotel’s refurbishment and the redevelopment of the White Hart Garages site are now being prepared in conjunction with a planned refurbishment of the Judge’s Lodgings building.

Long said: “My TSP group of companies are working closely with locally-based John Roberts Architects and our wider project team to produce a major redevelopment and significant overall enhancement scheme for the St Paul’s Lane, Bailgate and Castle Hill quarter of the city.

“Subject to obtaining the respective statutory consents, there is now a unique opportunity to deliver a fully interrelated redevelopment scheme for the White Hart Garages and car park site, in conjunction with the refurbishment and sustainable long-term future use of the Judge’s Lodgings.”

He added: “With long-established vehicular access from and to St Paul’s Lane, we are proposing a high-quality dedicated arcade of ‘kiosk-style’ retail units for artisan crafts and products/services, that will be situated within the frontage of 2 Bailgate, immediately opposite the White Hart Hotel. This arcade will then also provide an attractive safe pedestrian link through to the new on-site parking area, as to be situated immediately to the rear of the Judge’s Lodgings, from which there will also be direct customer access.

“Subject to further detailed design, we will also create an additional 30 hotel bedrooms within a combination of the upper floor level of the original Judge’s Lodgings building and new build elements within the overall site, all to be operated through the White Hart Hotel (currently 50 bedrooms) and situated within a fully integrated landscaped setting. The ground floor of the Judge’s Lodgings is to be used for high quality restaurant and other hospitality facilities, on which further information will be released at a later stage.”

Lincolnshire County Council had declared the Grade II* listed building surplus to its requirements.

Andrew France, associate sirector at Lambert Smith Hampton, marketing agents for the property, said: “Acting on behalf of LCC, we are pleased to have concluded this transaction with TSP Developments and have been impressed with the proposed refurbishment scheme in conjunction with Andrew Long’s redevelopment of the immediately adjacent White Hart Garages site.”

Marketed with a guide price of offers in excess of £850,000, the value of the deal has not been disclosed.

James Cook of Kier Design & Business Services on behalf of LCC, added: “There has been detailed engagement to successfully finalise the transaction to the satisfaction of both parties over the last eight months, for what should now be a secure long-term future for the Judge’s Lodgings.”

Shoosmiths Solicitors acted on behalf of TSP Developments in conjunction with PBC Surveyors and Project Managers of London.

Paul Philips, managing director at PBC, added: “We are very pleased to be working with Andrew in the wonderful historic city of Lincoln, based on established long-term professional relationships and also Andrew’s renewed close working relationship with John Roberts Architects, together with other locally based members of the project team.”