Hilton next to Terriers set for ‘yes’
NEAR TO TOWN STADIUM
A HIGHLY-ANTICIPATED plan to build a 148-bed hotel by Huddersfield Town’s ground looks set to get the green light.
The global Hilton hotels chain put in a bid to build a five-storey hotel in front of the John Smith’s Stadium last July.
The planning application came after years of delays amid problems getting the ambitious HD One ski-slope and leisure scheme off the ground.
An initial plan to build a Radisson hotel on the site of the former Direct Golf driving range was approved in 2016 but then scrapped by HD One chiefs, who decided it was too far from the conferencing facilities in the stadium.
Now a plan to build a Hilton Garden Inn on the Town Avenue car park, and an adjacent plot of grass, is near to being given the go-ahead.
Kirklees Council documents, published ahead of the Strategic Planning Committee next week, reveal planning officials are recommending the hotel is allowed.
They have calculated that Hilton should pay more than £230,000 to the council in so-called S.106 payments.
The majority of the contribution, £158,234, would be to mitigate the loss of a basketball court and grass area beside the Town Avenue estate.
The council proposes to use the cash to create a new open space.
A £63,000 sum would be put towards road improvements at the clogged up Cooper Bridge junction.
£10,000 would be for other travel projects in the area.
The report for councillors reveals there have been only two objections to the hotel plan, both from residents close to the site.
They raise concerns about the traffic, noise and loss of green space for children to play on.
Hilton Hotels have indicated that if planning permission is granted, work could start within weeks.
The plan was first revealed by the after Huddersfield Town football club advised fans that the Town Avenue car park would be off limits from December.
The completion of the hotel is expected to be the catalyst to getting HD One off the ground.
The revised plans are yet to be published.
Hilton Hotels have
indicated that, if planning permission is granted, work could start within
weeks