‘We hope to be on site later this year, although with such a complex project I would caveat that by saying there’s still much to do.’
PLANS for a five star boutique hotel in Plymouth have temporarily been put on hold because of the “complexity of the project”.
But developer Will Ashworth of Watergate Bay Hotel says the project in Royal William Yard is “very much still part of our plans”.
Developers plan to spend £18million to £21million to convert the Grade I listed building into a 66-bedroom hotel, which was initially due to open this year.
Now this could be delayed until at least 2018.
In the mean time the team behind Cornwall’s Watergate Bay Hotel has announced the launch of the ‘Another Place’ collection of hotels.
Rampsbeck Hotel on Ullswater, set in 18 acres of the Lake District National Park, is the first to launch within the collection.
“Plymouth is very much still part of our plans but we have realised it is a project that would take some time come to fruition,” explained Mr Ashworth.
“It’s a very, very large project, not only in terms of expense, but also dealing with a grade 1 listed building takes a huge amount of planning and careful thought.
“What we have realised is whilst Plymouth continues getting ready for work to start on site, we have the ability to launch our new collection with a hotel that already exists and is operating.”
A deal was agreed two years ago between developers, Urban Splash and Plymouth City Council.
The investment is set to transform the prominent Melville building in the heart of RWY, with the creation of 60 bedrooms, two restaurants, a cocktail bar, members club, 25m swimming-pool and an events space for leisure and business use.
Mr Ashworth took over the running of Watergate Bay Hotel from his parents in 2004
The design will be centered around the distinctive clock tower and courtyard, overlooking the marina.
Mr Ashworth added: “We have a business plan and we want to create a collection – Plymouth will be the flagship.”
Mr Ashworth, who took over the running of Watergate Bay Hotel from his parents in 2004, says once building starts it will be another two years for the project to be completed.
“We’re trying to get there as soon as we can,” he said. “We are talking to Urban Splash – the developers of RWY – about how they can assist on this.
“We are having very constructive discussions, as well as with Plymouth City Council (PCC), who are being extremely helpful.
“We hope to be on site later this year, although with such a complex project I would caveat that by saying there’s still much to do.
“We feel we’ve always been working in partnership with Urban Splash, as they have huge experience and we will tap into that in order to deliver such a complex project.
“PCC have been very proactive in supporting us and we will continue to need their support to deliver the project. We’ve always seen it as being a partnership, and that is how we will continue to see it.”
Nathan Cornish, from Urban Splash, told The Herald in 2013: “There is lots of hard work ahead before the scheme gets on site and we look forward to working with Watergate Bay through the planning and development process to further realise our vision of a thriving mixed use community.”