Plans to turn a former fire station in Newcastle into a luxurious, five-star hotel look set to go ahead.
The disused city centre fire station in Pilgrim Street is set to become Hotel Gotham, in a multi-million pound renovation that forms part of a major regeneration of the entire street. Bosses behind the proposals for the 60-room hotel have promised a deluxe experience for future guests, with the original Hotel Gotham in Manchester having been named among the most opulent in Europe.
Northumbria Police and Newcastle City Council chiefs had raised concerns about the plans, with fears that the new venue could add to crime and disorder problems in the city centre. However, a council licensing hearing to determine the site’s future was postponed last week and the local authority has confirmed that the objections to Hotel Gotham’s operation are set to be withdrawn and the licence granted.
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The Pilgrim Street site, last used as a fire station in 2005, will also include a bar and restaurant open to the general public as well as guests. Manchester’s Hotel Gotham offers lavish rooms costing up to £1,000 a night and was named the best luxury city centre hotel in all of northern Europe in 2022.
The Newcastle plans, which are not connected to the once popular Gotham Town bar in Neville Street that closed in 2019, had attracted concern over an attempt to obtain a licence for late night refreshment that would have run until 5am. However, it is understood that that dispute with the city council and police was resolved ahead of the hearing that had been scheduled for last Tuesday.
The hotel’s licence application, which also included the right to sell alcohol from an outdoor terrace until 2am every day, states: “Hotel Gotham will be a five-star, 60 room hotel catering for the needs of those looking to have fun and luxury in the heart of the city. Permission has been granted for a range of rooms including luxury suites for this proposed hotel and it will add a great venue for Newcastle for many years to come.
“This project follows on from its sister hotel in Manchester which opened six years ago. The hotel will also include a restaurant and bar open to both hotel guests and non-residents seven days a week, as well as a private bar for members, VIPs, and hotel guests.
“A premises licence is required prior to the signing of the lease, work can then begin and transform this building into a luxury venue for the city.”
The regeneration of the site has been led by Taras Properties, the development vehicle of the billionaire Reuben brothers. Their plans to breathe new life into the neglected Pilgrim Street have also included the building of the new Bank House office block and the creation of the massive Pilgrim’s Quarter development due to be completed by 2027.
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