Green light for Square Mile office-to-hotel scheme

An Austrian hotel operator has been given the go-ahead for a £116.7m office-to-hotel scheme in the heart of the capital’s financial district. The City of London Corporation has approved Ploberger Hotel Group’s plans to demolish Boundary House at 7-17 Jewry Street, EC3, and replace it with a 311-bedroom luxury hotel including a rooftop restaurant. The part-15-storey, part-eight-storey development will retain some office space on the ground and first floors. The existing building comprises 45,000 sq ft of offices across its eight storeys. Ploberger owns two hotels in Austria and the Czech Republic and has consent to redevelop the Grade II listed Bow Street Magistrates’ Court and Police Station in the West End as a 100-bedroom hotel. The company bought the Jewry Street site from GR Properties in early 2021 for £30.9m. The proposed hotel scheme has a GDV of £116.7m. Shravan Joshi, chairman of the City Corporation’s planning and transportation committee, said: “Attracting UK and international visitors with a vibrant leisure and tourism offer is at the heart of the City’s recovery. We also want to provide flexible spaces for SMEs, start-ups and community and cultural uses, complementing our world-class financial and professional services sector. “Sustainability has been a core consideration of this scheme, which will boost tourism and provide a boutique co-working space to meet the changing needs of businesses.” To send feedback, e-mail tim.burke@eg.co.uk or tweet @_tim_burke or @EGPropertyNews Photo courtesy of Field Consulting