New Brighton Premier Inn could be approved in next few weeks

Premier Inn is hoping to open a second hotel in Brighton in West Street, adding to its existing site in North Street.

Along with 185 bedrooms, the new hotel would also boast its own restaurant and bar and storage for bikes.

Whitbread, the parent company of Premier Inn, said that, if approved, the new six-storey hotel would meet “high customer demand” with a location close to the beach.

The company said they expect a decision “in the next few weeks or so”.

A spokesman for Whitbread said: “We have been working hard as a team to bring Premier Inn to West Street in Brighton city centre.

“Brighton is a very popular destination for our guests and we are investing in a new 185-bedroom hotel in West Street to meet this high customer demand and provide a new location for our customers a stone’s throw from the beach.

“We are very proud of the proposed hotel we have submitted to Brighton and Hove City Council. The application is currently being consulted on by the council’s planning team and we are hopeful for a positive decision in the next few weeks or so.

“From our own in-house research, we know that Premier Inn hotels make a positive long-term contribution to seaside and coastal locations like Brighton.

“Not only do we create new jobs, but we find out guests support established businesses when they stay with us.

“For a large hotel like what we are proposing in West Street, this external spending can be many millions of pounds a year, with a good proportion spent in the local area around our hotels.”

The hotel would be located at the site of many of the city’s most popular clubs over more than a century, including the Sherry’s Dance Hall which dominated the nightlife scene in Brighton for almost three decades.

The area has also previously hosted a roller-skating rink, bingo hall, and several other nightclubs including the Pink Coconut, Paradox, Tru and Hedkandi.

Premier Inn has more than 800 hotels across the UK, with upwards of 76,000 rooms.