Yorkshire’s only five star hotel in £15m redevelopment

PROPERTY developer Skelwith has sold Roman House to the Splendid Hospitality Group, owners of the Grand Hotel and Spa, Yorkshire’s only five star hotel.

Previously the Cedar Court Grand Hotel & Spa, the group is rebranding the hotel acquiring the new site so it can expand with a £15m investment.

Splendid Hotel Group have now submitted a planning application to City of York Council to incorporate Roman House into the Cedar Court Grand Hotel and Spa.

If approved, the plans will double the number of guest rooms at the hotel and enable it to compete on an international scale. It will also introduce a 140-cover restaurant.

Stuart Bailey, chief executive of Splendid Hospitality Group, said: “This is an exciting period for The Grand and for York.

“The hotel is already acknowledged as being one of the finest in the region but, following this major investment, it will be amongst the finest in the country, attracting more visitors in search of a luxurious hotel stay from further afield.”

Developer Skelwith bought the 35,000 sq ft building in September 2013 from insurance giant Aviva after it became surplus to requirements to the insurance company’s office requirements.

Skelwith began working on plans to transform the building into 47 luxury city centre apartments, with planning permission granted by City of York Council in early 2014.

Following an approach by the owners of the Grand Hotel & Spa who wanted to use the building to provide extra accommodation for the hotel, Skelwith took the decision to sell the building.

Paul Ellis, managing director of Skelwith, said: “We were very excited to deliver our vision for Roman House but we are a commercial developer and made a commercial decision to sell when Splendid Hospitality Group said they were interested in the building.

“It made sense all round and we wish the company all the best with this building for the future.”

“As a company we have strong roots in York and remain committed to the city. We are currently in the process of looking at a number of exciting developments within the city.”

The planning application Splendid submitted includes will lead to the creation of an additional 107 executive suites within Roman House, as well as a business centre and valet parking area at ground floor level.

A 160-seat dining pavilion and outdoor seating terrace at the rear of the hotel, enabling this area to be used as a restaurant and for conferences and functions, will also be constructed.

The ground floor will be extended into the area occupied by the existing toilet block to provide a business centre, an internal lobby area and 3 small meeting rooms, which will be available to both hotel guests and for external bookings.