Plans submitted for a £10 million refurbishment and expansion of The George Hotel in Colchester have been granted planning permission.
In January 2017, Harwich-based developer Flying Trade Group, behind the Surya Hotels brand, announced plans for a £10m refurbishment and expansion of the George Hotel site, including a complete refurbishment of the 47 bedroom existing hotel and plans to convert nearby St Nicholas House into a 44 bedroom hotel. Just across the road from The George, St Nicholas House will become an extension of the existing hotel, almost doubling the rooms available to 91.
The planning application, lodged with Colchester Borough Council, has been given a green light with work due to start in 2018.
The project follows on from Flying Trade’s construction of six luxury apartments at One Castle Park, which also included the development of a coffee shop/archaeological exhibit – Claudius Gateway Museum. Built around significant archaeological ruins, including remnants of the ancient Roman Temple of Claudius, all proceeds generated from the tourist attraction are ploughed into good causes through Flying Trade Group’s charity division World Food Aid. Plans for The George, similarly include exposing parts of an ancient Roman road in the hotel’s cellar for public viewing.
Flying Trade plans to renovate and transform St Nicholas House and then use the 44 bedrooms created while it sets about restoring rooms at The George. The project is expected to create around 40 jobs within the building and hospitality sectors. St Nicholas House was previously used as a Co-op department store before becoming the home of JJB sports until 2009, when the space became vacant.
Approval was previously granted to convert the space into 19 apartments, but the scheme never went ahead. The ground floor of the building is currently used by the Entertainer Toy Shop and the Sweatshop, which will both remain.
The Grade II* listed George Hotel is in need of modernisation, however, renovation work requires the utmost care to protect the hotel’s rich history, due to its status as a ‘particularly important building of more than special interest’. Flying Trade plan to have archaeological and historical surveys across the hotel, which features elements of woodwork and beams dating back more than 700 years.
Flying Trade CEO Suki Dulai said: “We have to ensure that whilst we bring the hotel back up to date with modern facilities, that we don’t lose the historical atmosphere of the building. Our aim is to keep the charm and ambience of the hotel, extending and offering consistent standards, good food and accommodation.”
He added: “We continue to invest heavily in Colchester with The George Project along with St Nicholas House, Claudius Gateway and One Castle Park, with an emphasis on making the most of the town’s rich history. We aim to open up the cellar of The George and emulate the One Castle Park project by exposing the remains of a Roman road which runs beneath it.
“We want to expose the history within The George, so customers can feel and appreciate the warmth and depth of its past, while also enjoying the comforts and convenience of modern life, from WiFi to Cappuccino.”
History resonates throughout the historic coaching inn which is home to a stylish brasserie with excellent English a la carte dishes and daily specials. The extensive medieval cellars, preserved behind glass, have remnants of Roman roads and even the ashes left by the fires of Queen Boudicca’s rampage in AD60 when she burned Colchester to the ground.