Trafford hotel plans withdrawn for rethink

An application to refurbish the grade two-listed Trafford Park Hotel building in Stretford and add a 97-room extension has been withdrawn due to concerns over viability and car parking. 

Under the plans, the existing derelict building would have been refurbished to include 24 hotel rooms alongside a gym, bar, restaurant and meeting rooms across the ground floor and the basement. 

A five-storey new-build extension would have been constructed on the existing car park to the rear of the hotel. 

The application was submitted to Trafford Council by London-based hotel group Ashley Hotels, which bought the building at auction in 2017 for £900,000, almost three times above the asking price.

The hotel, constructed in 1902 and located on the corner of Village Way and Third Avenue, was previously operated as a pub by Enterprise Inns before closing in 2009. 

Having been derelict for the past decade, the building has several structural issues including timber decay and collapsed floors, according to a spokesperson from the scheme’s planning consultant Townscape. 

The spokesperson added that the main reason for withdrawing the application was over viability concerns, due to the extent of structural work required. However, the hotel company is expected to submit an application for an amended, scaled-back scheme. 

Gariff Construction, a joinery firm whose workshop is close to the hotel, has objected to the scheme on account of the strain it would put on existing limited parking provision. 

Liverpool-based DV Architects designed the scheme.