PLANS TO transform a former council building into a hotel have moved a step closer. Parc Eirias Hotel Ltd has submitted a planning application to Conwy County Council, seeking planning permission to convert the former Civic Centre building in Colwyn Bay into a 56-bedroom hotel.
In November the local democracy reporting service revealed the company, which also runs the award-winning Lawton & Lauriston Court Hotel in Llandudno, was looking to invest around £2-3m to renovate the former council building on Abergele Road.
The latest plans reveal there will be 21 ensuite bedrooms on the ground floor, 19 on the first floor, and 16 on the second floor, together with store rooms and office space.
The plans also reveal that the company will overhaul and redecorate the stairwells in a style more in keeping with the grade-two listed building’s historic feel.
The lift will be retained and the original parquet flooring on the ground floor restored. Modern 1960s cupboards, shelves, partitions, and fixtures and fittings will be removed, and existing skirtings, architraves, and covings will be retained, reflecting the building’s historic character.
The developers will also have to install pipework and vents since every bedroom will have ensuite facilities.
The planning application says the hotel will create 12 full-time and six part-time jobs.
Dating back to the early 20th century and neighbouring Eirias Park, the building was formerly known as Glan y Don and has been used as a Civic Centre since 1964.
Originally built as a convalescent home, the building is now protected by Welsh heritage guardians CADW, having been listed since 1994.
But Conwy moved staff out of the building following the completion of its new flagship Coed Pella building in 2018.
In a planning statement, Parc Eirias Hotel Ltd said, “The proposed use is very different to the previous use, and therefore alterations and upgrading works are required, which have the potential to affect the setting and the character of the listed building,” it reads.
“It is listed as an excellent example of the eclectic Arts and Craft architecture of Percy Worthington which combines bold, picturesque massing with retained and consistent detailing in a building of considerable architectural quality.”
Speaking in November, Carol-Lynn Robbins, one of the company’s three directors, together with husband Ian and Hannah Lawton-Jones, said: “We are all very, very excited.
“But we are all very apprehensive because we want to do the best for this building because it is so beautiful, but we know it’s going to take an awful lot of effort, finance, and a lot of love.”
The application will go before Conwy County Council’s planning committee for debate.
