Defence Online

The boutique four-star Hope Street Hotel in the heart of Liverpool’s Georgian Quarter could soon embark on a major expansion under newly submitted plans.David Brewitt Ltd has lodged a full planning application with Liverpool City Council for a new-build multi-storey extension across the roof of the 1931 School for the Blind building together with the refurbishment and conversion of the first and second floors to create 12 additional hotel rooms, 26 aparthotel suites and supporting accommodation. It is also seeking permission to refurbish and restore the existing courtyard buildings of the former School for the Blind and make various internal and external alterations.Founded by serial entrepreneur David Brewitt, the 89-room Hope Street Hotel opened its doors in 2004. It occupies a prominent Georgian Quarter site on the corner of Hope Street and Hardman Street facing the art-deco Philharmonic Hall concert hall and the ornate Philharmonic Dining Rooms Victorian pub, both of which are grade II*-listed.The earliest part of the former Royal School for the Blind complex was built between 1849 and 1851 and is grade II-listed. When it was founded in 1791, the school was the first blind school in Britain and only the second in the world.A heritage statement filed alongside the application by the Planning Studio said that the proposals “will open up the remainder of the listed building to the general public and bring the building’s rich history and architecture alive, delivering very significant economic, tourism and cultural benefits”.