The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
City’s station and newest hotel bring waterfront into view
DEVELOPMENT: The Sleeperz Hotel opens its doors ahead of the Open at Carnoustie
Dundee’s newly-redeveloped train station and the multi-million-pound hotel above it will welcome their first guests on Monday.
The Courier was given early access to the Sleeperz hotel yesterday as staff made final preparations for its grand opening.
One of the hotel’s first duties will be to host a reception for local dignitaries on Monday morning to celebrate the completion of the railway station after an almost three-year redevelopment.
Once fully occupied, the station’s bright and airy public concourse will offer a significantly enhanced retail and café choice for passengers arriving and departing the city.
The “design-led” Sleeperz hotel above comprises 120 vibrantly coloured bedrooms arranged over three floors.
There is also a lounge bar overlooking Slessor Gardens that will be open to nonresidents as well as paying guests.
The hotel’s general manager, Manny Baber, said he was delighted to be playing a part in Dundee’s economic renaissance.
“We saw the development in Dundee, the investment coming in to Dundee and the future plans for the city and it was just too good an opportunity to miss out on,” Mr Baber said.
“The waterfront and the V&A would have been big enough by itself (to secure Sleeperz investment) but there is much more going on in the city than that.
“Our approach is a high quality, comfortable, service-oriented approach without customers having to pay a premium price. There is a very strong corporate market mid-week and there’s the leisure market at the weekend and we are trying to appeal to everybody.
“We have a great site and we want to be a part of the city.”
The station development has taken almost three years to complete, with contractors Balfour Beatty facing a race against time to ensure the building was complete and the keys handed over ahead of the Open championship at Carnoustie next week.
A total of 42 staff have been recruited and trained for the hotel in recent months and Mr Baber said the Open was a great first test.
The hotel has significantly hiked its regular rooms rates for the championship weekend but Mr Baber said the investment at Dundee was not predicated on a single golf tournament.
“We want to be a positive influence in the city,” Mr Baber said.
“The team we have assembled is all local and our suppliers are mostly local as we don’t have the restrictions that some other, bigger groups have.
“We have tried to invest as much money as we possibly can in the local economy through employment and procurement – and even with our small jobs we have tried to do things locally.
“That is the strength of our commitment to the local market.”
The waterfront and the V&A would have been big enough in itself (to secure Sleeperz Investment) but there is much more going on in the city than that. MANNY BABER, SLEEPERZ