The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
First views of work to transform old mills
Insight into work to let part of city heritage play role in waterfront regeneration
The first images of two new hotels being created in the former Baxter Brothers jute mills complex in Dundee have been released.
The former Bell and North mills are being transformed into two hotels to be run by Focus Hotels Management.
Work on the multi-million-pound conversion started earlier this year and is due to be completed next spring.
Around 90 jobs will be created within the two hotels.
The project, undertaken in partnership with the InterContinental Hotels Group and developers Percor Capital, will restore the architectural legacy of the buildings, including a bell tower modelled on the Santa Maria della Salute in Venice.
The developers are working closely with Historic Scotland on the project.
Hotel Indigo Dundee, comprising 102 guest rooms, and the 85 guest room Staybridge Suites Dundee, will open next year and form a key part of the waterfront regeneration programme.
One of Dundee’s largest linen dynasties began when William Baxter, in partnership with eldest son Edward, built his first spinning mill on the site’s Dens Burn in 1822.
ROB CORLETT
The company expanded dramatically in terms of machinery and personnel to become one of the world’s largest linen manufacturers, employing as many as 5,000 people in the 1870s.
Baxter Brothers & Co was incorporated as a private limited firm in 1892, and in 1924 became part of the Low & Bonar group, for whom the firm continued trading as a manufacturing unit until the site closed in 1978.
The project will pay homage to the site’s rich history by naming one of the junior suites at the Hotel Indigo after a former staff social events organiser at Baxter Brothers & Co, Daisy Tasker.
The boutique Hotel Indigo will provide a mixture of standard and executive rooms and suites, while many of the hotel’s public areas will highlight the site’s former use as a jute mill.
A games section will be available for guests to enjoy along with a cosy meeting area called The Den, a fully-equipped gym, a bar and restaurant.
Staybridge Suites will cater for extended-stay guests, offering a range of serviced studios and one-bedroom apartments with full kitchens as well as large desks and Wi-Fi coverage.
There will also be a breakfast area, a small retail complex, a spacious lounge, a laundry room and a meeting area.
Rob Corlett, director of Percor Capital, said: “We started this process in November 2013 and it is extremely pleasing to see it now come to fruition.
“Our aim throughout, has been to ensure that the entire site became fully used for the first time in nearly 40 years whilst maintaining the historic internal and external features of the mill.”
Focus Hotels Management has a UK portfolio of 16 hotels, with more than 1,500 bedrooms.
Our aim throughout, has been to ensure that the entire site became fully used for the first time in nearly 40 years whilst maintaining the historic internal and external features.