A new £6.4million luxury hotel is to open in the heart of Inverness next year after the plans were approved by council officials.
The directors of the city’s Kingsmills Hotel have been given the go-ahead for a major revamp of the Maple Court Hotel, on the banks of the River Ness.
Work will now get under way to transform the eight-bed guesthouse into an “aspirational 5-star” hotel with 48 rooms and a high-quality restaurant.
The development is expected to create 60 jobs and secure the future of the B-listed Maple Court on Ness Walk.
Local authority planning officers approved the proposals under delegated powers after the designs were tweaked to avoid an objection from Historic Environment Scotland.
Formerly the home of Dr William Simpson, a provost of the Royal Burgh of Inverness, the mid 19th-century villa is B-listed and the designers carefully retained important features such as the ceiling, cornices and veranda canopy, as well as the trees in the gardens.
The existing building would remain, with its interior transformed and a two-and-a-half storey extension built to house almost all of the bedrooms, as well as creating a new courtyard.
Historic Environment Scotland removed its objection after a proposed link building was reduced in size and became fully glazed, with the number of bedrooms proposed also reducing from 52 to 48.
Tony Story, managing director of Kingsmills owners the Patio Hotel Group, welcomed the decision by planners and said he was aiming to have the hotel open by next summer.
“I think overall we’ve got a good development which is sympathetic to the site, and it makes sense in terms of scale,” he said.
“Highland Council were really very good, although it took quite a while to get through. The reason that this business failed in the past is that it had insufficient scale to be viable.
“Virtually all of our accommodation will be new-build. It will be extremely nice, high-end – it’s aspirational 5-star.
“I think it will enhance the accommodation – and food – offering in the city and I’m very pleased about it.”
Approving the scheme, planning officials said: “It is considered that, while large, the use of high quality materials and a combination of modern and traditional design will result in a development which will enhance its surroundings as well as ensuring the viability of an important building and bringing associated economic benefits to the area.”
