March 14, 2018 4.49 pm This story is over 71 months old

Lincoln council buys Travelodge hotel building for £13m

Profits from the lease will pay for local services.

The City of Lincoln Council has bought the Travelodge hotel building currently under construction on Tentercroft Street.

The £13 million deal sees the council purchase the building which is set to be completed later this year.

Once finished, the council will lease it to Travelodge for 25 years, with the hotel having an option to extend it by a further 25 years.

The council, which borrowed the money to make the purchase, hopes to make a return on the investment within around 30 years, with money reinvested into maintaining key services it would otherwise have to cut due to reduced central government funding.

The new hotel, which is being developed by York-based S Harrison, will consist of 127 bedrooms, broken down into 60 double bedrooms, 61 family rooms and six accessible rooms.

Of these, 28 will be ‘super rooms’ which are designed with business customers in mind and feature a desk, multiple USB and charging points across the room.

There will also be 22 car parking spaces.

Artist impression of the new Lincoln Travelodge on Tentercroft Street

The building will mainly be constructed from red and buff brickwork with recessed grey aluminium window frames.

The main entrance will lead to the reception, breakfast area, café, bar and seating area, and there will also be a kitchen and storage rooms on the ground floor.

Councillor Ric Metcalfe, Leader of City of Lincoln Council, said: “This is an important economic investment by the council. It’s going to be very important for the visitor economy. We need more middle-range hotels to encourage more people to come and stay in Lincoln for more than one day.

“But there’s also the multiplier effect. This is a business that will employ people, it’ll be a boost to economic demand in the city. That will have a beneficial knock-on effect to the wellbeing and prosperity of the city as a whole.”

Tony O’Brien, UK Development Director for Travelodge Hotels, said: “The new Travelodge Lincoln City Centre is in a perfect location for business and leisure visitors to the city. Being easy to find and access, having excellent car parking adjacent to the hotel and being directly opposite the railway station, the new Travelodge is ideal for customers driving to Lincoln or arriving on the train.”

David Clancy, Development Director at S Harrison, added: “This year-long transformation into a much-needed new hotel in the heart of Lincoln has created jobs and helped boost the local economy.”