An ‘environmentally challenged’ office block near the centre of Bath could soon be demolished to make way for a giant three-star hotel.
How the new hotel could look | Image © Frank Capital
The 152-room hotel, which would be six storeys high with a restaurant and bar, would create 47 new jobs in the city and bring an anticipated £1.9m a year into the local economy, developers say.
The building of the hotel would also support 127 construction jobs a year until it is completed.
A presentation of the plans at a consultation event in October stated: “Bath attracts over 6 million visitors a year. Savills research team identified strong demand for a three-star hotel in this location.”
An application to get planning permission for the development has now been submitted to Bath & North East Somerset Council.
Beazer House, a large but almost empty office block on the Lower Bristol Road would be demolished to make way for the hotel under the plans.
After being marketed for two years, no office occupiers have expressed interest and the final company to rent a floor is planning to move out within the month.
The presentation stated: “Beazer House was built as an office building in 1966. It is no longer fit for purpose, and at the end of its economic life. It has an EPC ‘E’ rating and is therefore environmentally challenged.”
A design and access statement submitted with the application added: “Beazer House is subjectively considered one of Bath’s least attractive buildings.”
If planning permission is approved, work could start in June and it is hoped the hotel could be open and trading by December 2025.
You can view and comment on the plans here.
John Wimperis, Local Democracy Reporter
