7 minute read
£100,000 refurbishment
Bristol hotel unveils glittering new ballroom
A Bristol hotel has unveiled its glittering new ballroom following a £100,000 refurbishment and extension.
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The project means the DoubleTree by Hilton Bristol City Centre has become only the third residential venue in the city to be able to accommodate more than 300 delegates for a conference.
The completion of the work, which took around five weeks, was marked by a visit from Mrs Peaches Golding OBE CStJ, Her Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant for Bristol, who gave her seal of approval to the new ballroom.
Mrs Golding said: “The splendid accommodation provided by the new ballroom will attract commercial, tourist and social use from the city and beyond.
“It’s ideally situated in the heart of the city but within easy reach of Bristol Temple Meads railway station, Bristol International Airport and commuters using the M4 and M5 motorways.
“I am thrilled that the ownership team has made this investment in our city, as the hotel is good for Bristol and Bristol is good for DoubleTree by Hilton.
“Now conferences and groups of more than 300 people and more have another premium-quality venue to meet their dining and meeting needs, as well as their IT and accommodation requirements.” The hotel’s General Manager, Imran Ali, said: “The new ballroom ended up a little bigger than we originally expected, as other opportunities for creating some more room emerged as the work started.
“We now have an amazing facility that can accommodate around 340 people in cabaret-style and can seat 450 guests theatre-style.
“The refurbishment project went very well and was actually completed slightly ahead of schedule.
“We’ve already hosted our first wedding and a successful networking event for Redcliffe and Temple BID and received some very positive feedback about our refurbishments.
“After the lockdowns and challenges posed by the pandemic, a well-defined path to recovery lies ahead, and we’re building our business back stronger than ever.
“We’re very proud of our new facilities which we believe will be of great benefit to Bristol.” As well as increasing the capacity of the room, windows were added to provide natural daylight, and energy-efficient IT and electrical upgrades were added.
“We know that the city receives a good volume of enquiries for venues with the kind of capacities that we are now able to accommodate.
“We’ve had an extremely busy past few months, which has been great, but the corporate business has been softer so far.
“But as that starts to pick up again postpandemic, this significant investment in our hotel will put us in the perfect position to be able to attract that corporate business.”
The 206-bedroom DoubleTree by Hilton Bristol City Centre is managed by Focus Hotels Management.
Lynn Hood, Chief Operating Officer of Focus Hotels, said: “Like many businesses in the hospitality sector, the past 18 months has been very challenging.
“But since the easing of lockdown restrictions, we’ve been enjoying a very positive recovery in the conference market, which has been extremely encouraging, as this makes a significant contribution to the financial stability of hotels. “This investment at the DoubleTree by Hilton Bristol City Centre further reinforces the growing confidence in the sector and is another positive indication that we are on the road to recovery.
“The new ballroom is not only a huge asset to the hotel but will also benefit the whole city because of the kind of events it will now be able to host.”
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Several local bus routes are supported by the West of England Combined Authority, which provides money to make them viable. These include the 513, 514 and Brislington Park and Ride service. Local residents may be interested in completing a WECA consultation on the future of these supported routes. The consultation closes on 28th November: https://consultation.westofengland-ca.gov.uk/ infrastructure/west-of-england-supported-busservices-survey/ 24
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Photography exhibition:
We heartily recommend the Food Photographer of the Year exhibition at the Royal Photographic Society at the Paintworks. This free exhibition runs until 12 December and features short videos and amazing photographs from around the world. Grants to boost vacant commercial property use in Bristol:
A new grant scheme offering businesses and organisations up to £10,000 to bring vacant buildings back into permanent or temporary use has been launched as part of fresh support for Bristol’s economic recovery.
The £1.3 million initiative, funded by the city council, will focus on encouraging new types of businesses, including creative and cultural activities, services and community uses into the city centre and high streets across Bristol. Open to applications from new or expanding small or micro-sized businesses, charities, community, voluntary or social enterprises, the scheme aims to offer support to boost customer footfall, create new jobs and improve the sustainability of businesses. The vacant commercial property grant scheme forms part of the wider City Centre and High Streets Recovery and Renewal programme, which has received funding from the West of England Combined Authority’s Love our High Street project. To apply for a grant, the business or organisation must be looking to lease or rent currently vacant commercial premises located within Bristol city centre or one of the 47 high streets, with consideration given to properties located just outside these areas as long as they are in very close proximity to them. The grant can be used to cover a wide range of activity from building works, improvements and modifications to new equipment, shop fittings and display units. Applicants will be encouraged to demonstrate how their business will benefit the high street and Bristol citizens, by adding diversity to the area, employing local people or people from under-represented groups, adopting the real Living Wage, improving disabled access and facilities and demonstrating a clear commitment to sustainability through choice of materials, transport and energy. Visit the council’s Vacant Commercial Property Grant page on the website for further information, to download the full guidance notes and to apply. The council will be holding a series of webinars to talk through the vacant commercial property grant scheme. Visit the webpage or sign up to the business newsletter to find dates: www.bristol.gov.uk/businessnewsletter.
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