GB Group has secured public and private sector funding for a £32m hotel development at the heart of Leeds city centre, the closest to the newly opened flagship Leeds Arena.
GB Building Solutions will start work this month on the £21m building contract to create the 206-bedroom, 14-storey Hilton Leeds Arena, which will include a destination rooftop bar and will open in 2016. The site, directly next to Leeds Metropolitan University’s Rose Bowl conferencing facility, is just 300m from the 13,500 capacity Leeds Arena, which has already hosted the likes of Bruce Springsteen and Sir Elton John.
The GB Group worked closely with Leeds and Partners, the city’s inward investment organisation, to secure £4.8m funding from the Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) in addition to private funding, to ensure the scheme’s go-ahead.
Owned by GB Group, to be run by Redefine BDL
The GB Group will retain ownership of the hotel, which will be operated as a Hilton Hotels & Resorts property under a franchise agreement with Hilton Worldwide. Once open, it will be managed by hospitality specialist Redefine BDL.
Rob Palleschi, global head of Hilton Hotels & Resorts, said, “We’re delighted to bring another hotel to the city of Leeds. Our brand has strong ties with the entertainment industry, so we’re particularly excited to be locating so close to one of the UK’s most sought-after new venues. With Hilton Leeds City also undergoing a £4 million refurbishment this signing underlines our ongoing commitment to the Leeds market.”
This is GB Group’s second new hotel development in partnership with Hilton Worldwide following the successful delivery of Hilton Garden Inn Luton North, in Luton, Bedfordshire.