Plans to build Portsmouth’s first five-star boutique hotel have now been hit by a new blow.
Originally developers looked at the potential of converting the Royal Marines Museum site in Eastney, but in discussions with city council leader Donna Jones, the plans broke down. Jones met with a developer, which designs upmarket boutique hotels, eight months ago to go over a proposal for the empty site.
Speaking to Portsmouth News, Jones said: “I was in consultation with a company for them to convert the building into a five-star hotel. “Unfortunately this isn’t possible. “It’s difficult to get planning permission to convert a listed building so I think that it will be challenging for a hotel chain to take on the site.
“If the company was looking to convert the building into a three or four-star hotel then the Royal Marines Museum would be perfect for them.” Plans for a five-star hotel in Portsmouth are still being pursued, with other sites such as Queen Street around Southsea and Old Portsmouth being investigated. Jones has also been in contact with a number of hotel operators, including Bespoke Hotels, which recently opened the hotly-anticipated Hotel Gotham in Manchester.
And Cllr Jones has been in contact with a number of other companies, including Bespoke Hotels and developer Tony Kaye, who has helped set up luxury hotels across Europe. “We’re just looking to find the right location for the hotel to be built or converted from an existing building but the ideal place would obviously be along the seafront,” she said.