Local relief as 13 weeks of work to save crumbling historic Newport hotel gets under way
Newport residents have expressed their relief that work has finally begun on vital repairs to the delipidated Royal Victoria hotel.
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Described by Newport Councillor, Peter Scott as "the shame of Newport", the now crumbling once-grand hotel has been at the centre of an ongoing row between its owner and Telford & Wrekin Council for several years.
Since planning permission was granted to redevelop the site into flats in October 2018, the building on St Mary's Street has been falling into a worse state of disrepair and the development has never been completed.
In February 2023, scaffolding that surrounded the Georgian hotel was ordered to be taken down and rebuilt after it was found to be unsafe, but after the court deadline passed, the council stepped in and carried out the necessary work in March. The authority says it carried out further work at the property in October last year "to ensure public safety".
Telford & Wrekin Council has claimed that it “tried repeatedly” to work with the owner, Roger Brock of Town Centre Properties, to protect the Grade II listed building, and stressed it would not allow it to deteriorate or be demolished.
In December, the authority’s planning committee agreed to make a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO) on the historic property - a process that can take around 18 months.
