Premier Inn, St Albans

Location
St Albans
Client
Rockspring
Value
£7.3m
Completion
2014
Size
123 beds
BREEAM Rating
'Very Good'

Blending the old with the new; developing a scheme for a 123 bed hotel within a conservation area

Stride Treglown was approached by Rockspring after its previous attempt to secure planning permission for this site had been successful. Developing a scheme for a 123 bed hotel and retail units on this site, within a conservation area and including a locally listed building was very challenging. We developed a strategy which included both the retention of the listed façade and the juxtaposition of a contemporary elevational treatment using large terracotta fins which made reference to the local materials.

New retail units were created on the busy St Peter Street frontage while the hotel is entered from Adelaide Street where an extensively glazed frontage allows views to and from the restaurant, while on the upper floors the bedrooms are wrapped round a four sided courtyard. This efficient plan enabled us to step the building back at the prominent corner on St Peter Street to satisfy the planning authority, without reducing the overall bedroom count.

New bedrooms were created behind the listed façade and the pitched roof of this building was reconstructed, using the original roof tiles, to form a discreet plant room.

The hotel has been designed to be energy and water efficient in order to achieve a BREEAM rating of Very Good. This addition to the Premier Inn brand opened in late 2014 and is trading very successfully, while the retail units were occupied prior to completion of the hotel.