Project in focus: Municipal Buildings Hotel, Liverpool

Liverpool City Council’s majestic former home is being turned into a hotel by Fragrance Group, with help from the likes of Russell WBHO, Falconer Chester Hall and Koncept ID.

An elegant new four-star hotel is currently under development in one of northern England’s biggest cities.

Reimagining Liverpool’s Victorian masterpiece

Built in the 1860s, the grade II*-listed Municipal Buildings on Dale Street served as Liverpool City Council’s home for 150 years, before the local authority finally moved out in 2017 as part of cost-saving efforts. The 17,000 sq m property was snapped up by Singapore-based developer Fragrance Group on a 250-year lease in early 2017, paving the way for its conversion into a four-star hotel.

Construction company Russell WBHO started work on the £40m refurbishment programme in November 2020. The scheme – which involves renovating the existing property and adding a four-storey, bronze-clad extension at the rear – will create around 180 guestrooms; a restaurant, bar and reception in the stunning ground-floor atrium; meeting and conference facilities; and a spa complex complete with pool, gym and treatment rooms.

Preserving the Municipal Buildings’ clock tower

The building is constructed of sandstone with a rock-faced granite plinth and a landmark clock tower with renaissance detailing visible throughout the city. It’s envisaged that there will only be minimal interventions to the external elevations.

Inside, the property’s historic features that are due to be restored include friezes and marble fireplaces depicting reliefs of liver birds and Queen Victoria, vaulted and coffered ceilings, tile dados resembling polished parquetry, a muniments room with metal window shutters and a basilica-like main hall.

The professional team working on the project, which is due to complete in Q4 2022, also includes architect Falconer Chester Hall, heritage architect Stephen Levrant Heritage Architecture, interior designer Koncept ID and structural engineer Curtins.

Many TOPHOTELNEWS articles draw on exclusive information from the TOPHOTELPROJECTS construction database. This subscription-based product includes details of thousands of hotel projects around the world, along with the key decision-makers behind them. Please note, our data may differ from records held by other organisations. Generally, the database focuses on four- and five-star schemes of significant scale; tracks projects in either the vision, pre-planning, planning, under-construction, pre-opening or newly opened phase; and covers newbuilds, extensions, refurbishments and conversions.

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