Whitbread snaps up an office for conversion in Leeds City Centre
The hotel development market in Leeds city centre shows no sign of slowing following the acquisition of a strategically located development site by Whitbread PLC, the parent company to the Premier Inn hotel chain, and the UK’s largest hotel business.
It has acquired the freehold of a 42,000 sq ft office building (GIA) in the South Bank area of Leeds City Centre which it intends to redevelop into a Premier Inn hotel offering around 120 bedrooms, subject to planning permission.
The detached building, which was built in 2000 is strategically positioned for re-use as a hotel given its city centre location and proximity to Leeds Railway Station which is less than a three-minute walk away.
Whitbread intends to retrofit the L-shaped building into a Premier Inn hotel and seek planning consent for an extension.
Jill Anderson, Acquisitions Manager for Whitbread, said:
“Whitbread has a long and successful track record of converting office buildings into popular budget hotels. It is a proven route to expanding our presence in popular locations like Leeds City Centre where development opportunities are limited and where we have a requirement to grow. Converting offices into hotels also provides obvious benefits to the environment by extending the life of existing buildings and reducing the embodied carbon of development.
“Verity House makes for a superb hotel location given its proximity to the station and all the amenities in Leeds City Centre. It complements our existing network of eight Premier Inn’s across the city and as a freehold purchase it demonstrates Whitbread’s willingness to take on planning and development risk to secure exceptional locations for our guests. The location has huge potential and I’m looking forward to working with the City Council’s planning team on repurposing the building.”
The acquisition of Verity House grows Whitbread’s secured development pipeline in Leeds City Centre to two locations and more than 250 pipeline bedrooms. It currently offers its customers a choice of eight trading locations across the city (including Leeds / Bradford Airport).
To the east of the city centre, Premier Inn is the committed hotel occupier of the Leeds Kirkgate redevelopment being brought forward by Leeds City Council. Planning permission for the development was granted in December 2023, with the Premier Inn hotel set to offer 143-bedrooms as well as a bar and restaurant for guests.
In acquiring Verity House, Whitbread was advised by WSB property consultants. The vendor was advised by Commercial Property Partners.
