BLOC Hotels has announced the purchase of 21 West George Street in Glasgow, with plans afoot to develop a seven-storey hotel in the city centre location.
The former cash counting and storage facility, known as Dale House, is directly opposite Queen Street Station, which is currently undergoing a major redevelopment. The site has full planning consent to replace the existing 1980s building with a hotel and retail space.
Bloc said its designers, in conjunction with innovation partners, will develop a ‘high-tech, smart hotel that matches the aspirations of the area’.
Dominic Mayes, property director at Bloc Hotels said, “We are really excited to have acquired this site and look forward to delivering Bloc Glasgow to this extremely vibrant part of the city. The property is in a prime location, directly opposite the recently redeveloped Queen Street Station, where the number of people using the station is set to increase by 40%, reaching 28 million by 2030. This is another defining moment in the company’s ambitious growth strategy, as we continue to expand into key gateway locations.”
The latest addition to Bloc’s portfolio has been purchased from LGIM Real Assets, a division of Legal & General Investment Management. JLL advised Legal & General on the sale.
Craig Westmacott, senior fund manager for Legal & General added, “Since being listed for sale, Dale House has generated considerable interest from developers, investors and owner occupiers for a variety of different uses. Having strategically secured valuable hotel consent on the site, we are pleased to have now sold the asset to Bloc Hotels, who will develop their hotel brand on this important Glasgow city centre location. The sale brings to a conclusion a successful asset management strategy which has generated attractive returns for our investors.”
Kerr Young, director, JLL commented, “Glasgow has recently been listed as the top cultural and creative centre in the UK in a report from the European Commission and remains a target location for a large number of hotel operators. We continue to see good traction across the UK from a number of well capitalised new and expanding hotel concepts and are delighted to have been instrumental in bringing Bloc Hotels to Scotland.
“We received in excess of 20 offers for the site and that is testament to the quality of the location and the opportunity it presents.”
