Hilton takes on landmark hotel site
Tuesday 30th March 2010, 11:30AM BST.
The landmark Fox Hotel in Wolverhampton is to be knocked down and replaced by a Hilton in a £15 million redevelopment, it was revealed today.
Work will start on the nine-storey 130-room hotel next spring after the Fox has been demolished.
It will transform one of the city’s main entrances, creating a new modern building on the Penn Island.
The 33-bed Fox Hotel has been on the site for more than 40 years. Last year it was served with a prohibition notice by West Midlands Fire Service which banned it from having guests for a short time because of its inadequate fire alarm system
.The Hilton development was today hailed as the first phase of a major revamp of the city centre’s western quarter.
It will be marketed as a Hampton by Hilton hotel, offering affordable rooms.
Wolverhampton City Council leader Neville Patten said: “I now believe the redevelopment of Wolverhampton is on a roll.”
Will Evans, development director of Wolverhampton Development Company, which has had an option to buy the Fox Hotel site since June 2008 and set up the deal, said: “It was essential to have the support of an iconic brand like Hilton and we are delighted with the outcome.”
Hampton by Hilton is a major brand of Hilton Worldwide that has 1,800 hotels in the US and is rolling out a UK chain.
Councillor Paddy Bradley, Council Cabinet Member for Regeneration said: “This is very positive news.”The Hilton Hotel plan was unveiled to a packed meeting of developers and their agents in Birmingham today.
Wolves chief executive Jez Moxey, who was also at the meeting said: “The local authority want to get things done and there are fabulous opportunities for anybody thinking of investing in the city.”
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All we need now is Urban Splash to pull their finger out with the Sunbeam site and that whole area could look a whole lot better! Pity the old Scala site doesnt get sorted out too.
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Do we really need a 9 storey 130 room hotel?
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Who cares as long as it’s private money that’s paying for it?
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Why dont we need a new hotel? What is wrong with people like you who are still stuck in the dark ages?
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There is no need to be rude or insulting Shane, I was merely questioning the need for such a large hotel.
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Another piece of fantastic news for the city!
Mark my words, this will kickstart the Summer Row developement and once this, the Transport Interchange and Summer Row begin, you won’t be able to keep people away from Wolverhampton.
Wolverhampton is evolving, things are beginning to happen after so many years in the doldrums. Just think of all the jobs these developements will create!
I for one am proud to live in this City.
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Go away. We will not vote for you.
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You won’t be able to keep people away from Wolverhampton because it will have a Hilton, a new bus stop and a shopping precinct?
You are deluded! I’ve lived here all my life and the city is going downhill faster than ever.
I like many others spend my money and time elsewhere and can’t wait to move to a decent place.
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Fantastic news and a great result for all those parties who arranged it.
Let’s hope it’s the first of many. I’d love to see the building opposite (the old Sunbeam works) be properly redeveloped as I understand it’s recently been acquired by Urban splash.
Out of darkness cometh light.
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it will be a sad day when the fox hotel is gone but we will have a modern hotel as its replacement.now lets get wolverhampton sorted out starting with summer row and the old sunbeam works.
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Great news! Hope it’s high end architecture like the new manchester hilton tower, not some bargain job though. On that subject: Let’s get a campaign going….Chapel ash needs urban splash!
(not that drawn by a child in the dark effort that’s in for planning at the moment)
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Not quite Hilton, it’s Hampton by Hilton, the budget chain of the Hilton empire, and usually let by franchise.
While I can’t help but be enthusiastic for any development in the Town, especially one that replaces such an eyesore as the Fox. I fear that the headline is a touch misleading – can’t remember them getting this excited by the Travel Lodge
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aren’t there better things to spend money on. i think there a lot of people in wolverhampton with rose tinted glasses on. it will take more than a hotel to sort out the ‘city’, evolution ? more like devolution.
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HAVEN’T WE HEARD ALL THESE PROPOSALS MANY TIMES BEFORE.OH I FORGOT IT’S ELECTION TIME SOON! IT IS ALL OLD HAT.
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Brilliant. The City was crying out for decent quality hotel accommodation as recently as 3 years ago.
Now we have this impending Hilton (albeit the lower end brand of Hampton), the Travel Lodge, the Premier Inn, the Ramada.
Like it or not, but you are often judged as a city (from the outside) by the quality and availability of good hotels.
Great stuff. Still makes you wonder why the “glamour” teams in the Premier League still insist on staying over in Telford!! (Manu-U and Everton as two recent examples).
Brewer
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ill give a year two four years after development that the hotel would made a loss and i think that the city would be better off if there was somthing realy posh say a mitchelin star restront
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maybe some decent schools so people like ‘Wolves’ learn correct grammar.
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Was The Fox ever really a ‘landmark’ anyway? Even during the 1970s it was already a depressing blot on the Wolvo landscape, and one that I was pleased to see disappearing in my rear-view mirror as I drove towards Penn – anything that gets rid of a badly planned piece of 60s tat can’t be a bad thing…. rejoice in the resurrection of our once mighty city!
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Haven’t any of you been in the Novotel recently……Fantastic hotel!
The Goldthorn and Connaught have both refurbished recently as well, for the better in my opinion.
The Hilton Hampton brand is not budget it is three star and will add some style to the hotel stock in Wolves.
My point is though, that to support these good hotels, we need some businesses to move in and use their facilities. Let’s hope this news is followed quickly by other announcements of some blue chip companies taking up residency as well!
UTW!
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Are you refering to the Former Park Hall hotel in Goldthorne? I attended a function there recently and the transformation by Ramada was akin to vandalism; it was ghastly, and as for those tacky gates…..it was a disgrace.
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Yep Neville Patten its really on a roll! Just like the Summer Row Development, Transport Interchange, New Court, Springfield Brewery site, New Bus Station etc etc. Nothing happens in this city because the council just keep it as plans and never can see it through! Oh and by the way what a farsical new ‘SAP computer system’ the council installed…cost over £9 Million but it never even got off the ground!
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Good idea. It will bring much needed jobs to the area and brighten the landscape too. With the summer row project, our new bus\rail terminus, 54i, and now this, things are beginning to look up.
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every journey begins with a single step..
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