Motel One to push ahead with 290-bed Cross St hotel
GERMAN budget hotel operator Motel One has secured planning permission for what will be its second venue in central Manchester.
Contractors are already on site building a 330-bed budget hotel for the chain in Whitworth Street, and now it will push ahead with a 290-bed hotel in Cross Street.
The developments are part of an expansion plan that will see the group build 1,400 hotel beds in the UK over the next two years.
Motel One already has a network of 45 hotels in Germany, Austria and Belgium, and opened its first UK hotel in Edinburgh in 2012. As well as the two in Manchester it is planning another in Edinburgh, one in Glasgow and one in London.
It will knock down the 37,000 sq ft Commercial Buildings next to Boots at 11-15 Cross Street and retain the facade for an eight-storey block. The building was sold for £5.1m in March by Aberdeen Asset Management but the identity of the buyer was never revealed.
In a report prepared for last week’s planning committee, council officers said: “The proposed hotel would provide life and vitality into this part of the city and should generate spin-off benefits within adjoining regeneration areas and complement existing uses in the area.
“The development would provide a well-designed building which would enhance the street scene and the character of the adjacent listed buildings and the adjacent conservation area. The building has been designed to relate well to its urban context at street level. Given the above it is considered that the building design is such that any harm caused to the wider historical character of the area is minimised.”
Trafford-based Russells Construction is the contractor and Stephenson: ISA Studio is the architect.
