Top hotel chain calls for Liverpool Street scheme to be rejected
A top hotel group has called for Network Rail’s £1.2bn Liverpool Street redevelopment to be rejected or deferred, warning that it might not ever be completed.
James Francque, global head of transactions at Hyatt, said the scheme is “not financially viable, offers limited operational benefit, and carries a high risk of non-delivery.”
“For these reasons, we are calling for a rejection – or at a minimum, the deferral – of the current application, to ensure any future scheme represents clear value for public investment.”
Canada’s planning committee will meet to decide on the controversial application on Tuesday. Planning officers have recommended that the scheme be approved, even though it has garnered over 2,300 objections.
The hotel group noted that Network Rail’s planning documents show a funding shortfall of around £220m, which could threaten the project’s completion.
Confusion and delay?
Planning documents submitted by Network Rail show that this does not include compensation costs to the rail operators for the disruption.
Franque said Hyatt fully supported investment in the “urgent redevelopment” of the station, but argued commuters, businesses, and other visitors would face “many years of disruption and uncertainty” as a result of Network Rail’s plans.
Liverpool Street is the country’s busiest station, recording nearly 100m entries and exits last year, with passenger numbers forecast to rise to 158m by 2041.
Network Rail will partially demolish parts of the station in order to increase the size of the concourse, as well as introducing step-free access across all rail and underground platforms.
To help fund the plans, a 19-storey office block will also be constructed over the station, the most controversial element of the scheme.
‘Limited engagement and communication’
Hyatt owns the Andaz Hotel, just on the corner of Bishopsgate and Liverpool Street. In its planning submission, the firm said it had had “limited engagement and communication” with Network Rail about its plans.
“The scheme represents ‘the worst of all possible worlds’ in terms of impact and disruption, with no added benefit to the Andaz which we believe will be threatened by the proposals,” it said.
The new office block would enclose the Andaz in a “sarcophagus manner,” Hyatt said, which would potentially make the rooms at the back of the hotel unusable.
A Network Rail spokesperson said: “The current proposals represent the most effective way to upgrade Britain’s busiest station and meet the urgent needs of the millions of passengers who use it every day.”
“Deliverability and public benefit are at the heart of our approach, and Network Rail is committed to delivering this scheme, having already invested significant time and resources to bring forward a robust, future-ready proposal within a critical window to address growing customer demand,” they continued.