Leisure investor acquires former Aviva building
HOTEL investor Yorkshire Ventures has acquired the former Aviva office building in York which it plans to convert into a hotel.
Yorkshire House on Rougier Street will be transformed into a 124-bed Malmaison hotel, along with 36 serviced suites and 13 residential apartments.
The firm’s development arm Yorkshire House Development One announced plans to convert the building into a boutique hotel in July. A planning application has been put forward to the City of York Council.
The Yorkshire Ventures Consortium has purchased the building in York city centre along with funding partners HIG Capital. Hobart Partners arranged the deal.
Richard Jackson, chairman of Yorkshire Ventures (Real Estate) said: “The proposals will deliver a significant boost to the local economy, creating new jobs once operational and during construction. The development will enhance and transform this key gateway into the city.”
The former Aviva offices were the home of several hundred staff, before the insurance giant announced that it would be attempting to make savings of £225m by the end of 2017, including selling off regional real estate.
Earlier this year, Yorkshire Ventures brought the Raithwaite estate from administrators KPMG after it went into administration as a result of the winding up petition against an associated company, Skelwith Leisure. It was behind the failed £100m Flaxby golf resort development in North Yorkshire.
