Express & Star

Green light given to 78-bed Travelodge in Dudley town centre

A hotel will be built in a Black Country town next to its main attraction after plans were approved.

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The 78-bed Travelodge will be in Tipton Road.

It was approved following an unanimous vote of the borough council's planning committee.

The nod was given despite objections received from Friends of Dudley Archives.

The hotel will be close to Dudley Archive and Local History Centre and the Black Country Living Museum.

Friends of Dudley Archives opposed the plan on the grounds it will remove parking from the site, which will soon also be the home of exhibitions from Dudley Museum, with additional concerns that the new building could damage the area's aesthetic value.

But the committee gave the scheme the green light at a meeting on Tuesday.

Ian Hunt, senior project engineer for Dudley Council, said: "There is space at the back of the current car park which could give plenty of scope for an additional 20 or so spaces. And staff working different shifts could essentially block each other in if it was necessary to fully utilise the space."

Councillor Asif Ahmed said: "The concerns that have been raised don't seem to hold much water," and chairman Councillor Keiran Casey added: "I like this development. I think it's a really good application that can help regenerate the area and bring jobs which will boost the economy."

His sentiments were echoed by Councillor David Vickers, who said: "It is an area of natural attraction, and Travelodge might not be a company who are associated with attractive design.

"But I think planners have worked hard to make the frontages look appropriate. It will be useful to have a hotel in the area.

"When people spend the night away, they are often looking for something relatively inexpensive, and that's what Travelodge will offer."

The four-storey hotel on the former Royal Brierley Crystal factory site would house 72 car parking spaces, three motorcycle spaces and eight bicycle parking bays, according to planning documents.

The factory was demolished in 2011 and the northern part of the site has been redeveloped for the Dudley Archive and Local History Centre.

Janet Lea, the honorary secretary of the Friends of the Archives, previously said: "The height and design of the proposed Travelodge Hotel is not in keeping with other buildings in the vicinity and the leisure side of the road and would detract from the aesthetic design of the area.

"The proposed housing development on the old hospital site and the increased use of the Dudley Guest Hospital is already making the road extremely busy with frequent traffic hold-ups."

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