Planners back scheme for new hotel and restaurant development

A new hotel and restaurant scheme is set to be built in the heart of Walsall’s rejuvenated Wisemore area.

Walsall Borough Council has granted consent for the new development, which is being delivered by Cordwell Property Group.

The mixed-use scheme, called Wisemore Central and set for a site on Littleton Street West, close to the town centre, will include a new Travelodge hotel, a two-storey drive-through McDonalds plus ground floor leisure and retail uses.

In addition to the hotel and restaurant, the scheme will also accommodate Explore Learning, an extra tuition facility specialising in maths and English.

Cordwell said it was currently in talks with national brands regarding letting the remaining space.

The Wisemore area has undergone major redevelopment in recent years with an 85,000 sq ft Tesco Extra supermarket and the new Walsall College and business hub acting as major catalysts for regeneration.

The derelict land on which the hotel and restaurant will be located, is next to what will eventually become the site of the new £400m Gigaport scheme, which has the potential to create thousands of new jobs for the town.

Tom Wilcox, director at Cordwell, said: “We are delighted to have been given the green light by the council. Our team have worked extremely hard to this point to bring the scheme to fruition.

“We are currently 80% pre-let even before we start on site, which shows confidence in the scheme and Walsall.

“With the positive interest already shown in the remaining space we’re confident the scheme will be a success.”

Work is due to start on site towards the end of the year, with a with towards completion by next autumn.