Plans lodged for 140-room hotel and restaurant

Proposals for a new hotel development at Leeds Kirkgate Market have reached another milestone.

Leeds City Council confirmed initial details of the proposed development on the George Street side of the market complex earlier this year. A full planning application has now been submitted for the scheme.

If the application is approved, work could start next year.

The project is seen as a way of driving further footfall into the market, which already pull in more than 400,000 visitors a month.

Land earmarked for the scheme is owned by the council and is currently occupied by vacant low-rise shop units.

The hotel would fill the top five floors of the new six-storey building and would have around 140 rooms as well as a bar and restaurant for guests.

On the ground floor there would be commercial units and a council-run gym. The scheme would be developed by the council, with a pre-let lease in place with the proposed hotel operator.

An initial ‘pre-application’ report on the proposals was considered by the council’s city plans panel on June 22. That meeting was followed by a period of community consultation.

Councillor Jonathan Pryor, Leeds City Council’s executive member for economy, culture and education, said: “We’re determined to do everything we can to deliver a bright and busy future for Leeds Kirkgate Market while also driving forward the regeneration of the surrounding area.

“These hotel proposals are designed to help us achieve that twin aim, and we have been encouraged by the response we have had to them over the last few months.

“The submission of the planning application marks another important step in a process that we hope will have a positive and transformative effect on George Street and the rest of the eastern side of our fantastic city centre.”