New 120-bedroom hotel planned for Stafford
A 120-bedroom hotel could be built in Stafford if planning chiefs approve the idea.
The proposals would see an Ibis Styles hotel on the vacant premises on Hunters Row, north of the town centre.
The hotel would help provide local jobs, improve the night-time economy and increase tourism, according to the application.
It would see four full-time and 16 part-time jobs created.
It will also make use of “largely redundant” retail space.
Karen Tierney, head of development at Stafford Borough Council, said there was a “lot of work” being done to boost the borough.
Ms Tierney said: “There is a lot of work going on behind the scenes selling the opportunities our borough offers to major businesses - not only in this country but around the world.
“The feedback we get from investors is that the borough is an attractive place to invest, our council and partners help make it easy for businesses to locate or relocate to the area, our connectivity to the rest of the country is good, and they can see the substantial growth already taking place.”
The proposals will now be examined by planning officers, with people now able to comment on the application before a decision is made by the council.
It comes after a number of investments in Stafford, which includes the £6 million Odeon Cinema, Primark, B&M, Aldi and new restaurants such as Nando’s and Verso.
The plans read: “The purpose of the planning application is to breathe new life into an increasingly vacant retail centre, evidenced by the many vacant retail units, by providing a use that will support and enhance the local economy. Located on the boundary of a declining retail area, hotel use has been identified as the most appropriate function for this site.”
