Leeds City Council has confirmed Premier Inn as the proposed operator of a new 143-bed hotel which is currently going through the planning process.
Located on the George Street side of the Grade I listed Leeds Kirkgate Market building, the hotel will fill the top five floors of the six-storey building and will comprise 143 rooms, a bar and restaurant for guests, a council-run gym as well as commercial units on the ground floor.
Leeds City Council submitted a planning application for the hotel in August and it will be considered by the council’s city plans panel at a meeting on November 30. If the application is approved, work will commence in 2024.
Ahead of next week’s meeting, the council has confirmed Premier Inn as the proposed operator of the hotel. A pre-let lease has been agreed with Whitbread-owned Premier Inn.
Why it matters
The collaboration between Leeds City Council and Premier Inn shows the potential for hotel companies to team up with local authorities in order to deliver new hotel developments.
What they said
Councillor Jonathan Pryor, Leeds City Council’s deputy leader and executive member for economy, culture and education said: The plans for the George Street hotel underlines the scale of our ambitions for both the market and the continued regeneration of the surrounding area. We are pleased to be working on this project with Premier Inn, which has a commitment to delivering quality and good value that mirrors our own approach as a council.”
Paul Smith, acquisitions manager for Whitbread said: “We know Premier Inn customers spend £140 per night per bedroom outside of our hotels when they stay in city centre locations like George Street in Leeds. Multiplying this figure across a high-occupancy 143-bedroom Premier Inn on George Street would generate a multi-million pound boost to the local economy, helping to support the many established and independent businesses in the market and elsewhere across Leeds city centre.”