27 Nov 2014
Heritage Lottery Fund dishes out £11.3m to Buxton Crescent Hotel and Thermal Spa
BY Helen Andrews
The Heritage Lottery Fund has pledged a further £11.3m (US$18m, €14m) towards the scheme to redevelop Buxton Crescent and Thermal Spa, in addition to the £12.5m (US$20.5m, €14.9m) it awarded the project in 2006.
The project to repair and restore the Grade I-listed building into a five-star thermal spa and 79-bedroom hotel is jointly owned by Derbyshire County Council and High Peak Borough Council and is expected to open at some point in 2016, according to the Buxton Advertiser.
The extra funding is expected to secure the long-term future of the flagship £46m (US$73m, €58m) development, which has undergone a number of delays due to legal difficulties and funding problems.
Before work can begin on the project early in 2015, developers must secure the final sum of £2m (US$3m, €2.5m) from the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership - a regional growth fund.
The spa will include thermal and wet treatment areas such as a sauna, saunarium, infrared sauna, ice room, aroma room, steamroom and salt grotto. The two existing basement pools – one for men and one for women – will both be completely refurbished.
Carbon dioxide and peat-infused baths will also be on offer, in addition to hydro massage and a hydrotherapy bath for couples. Dalesauna, suppliers of thermal and wet experience zones are operating as specialist consultants for the spa.
Danubius Hotels will operate the new spa, bringing medical expertise and traditional therapies to guests.
Upon completion, the building – originally built by the fifth Duke of Devonshire – will be open to the public for the first time since 1992.
The development also includes the addition of a visitor centre, tearoom, six boutique shops and a ‘heritage experience’ on the Grade II-listed Pump Room and the property’s assembly rooms – open to the public free of charge.
“We’ve chosen our contractor, Vinci, who carried out the first phase and the enabling works – so have a proven track record in this field,” said developer Trevor Osborne of Buxton Crescent Hotel and Thermal Spa. “Subject to securing the final piece of the funding jigsaw, we’re all set to go in the New Year. It’s an exciting time for the scheme and the whole town.
“The restoration of the Crescent is the cornerstone of the heritage-led regeneration currently helping to revitalise the High Peak, so this is the best possible news we could have received,” added Osborne.
Other funding for the site comprises £500,000 (US$800,000 €600,000) from English Heritage and £2m (US$3.3m, €2.4m) from the two local authorities who own the site. A total of £15m (US$24.8m, €18m) has been invested by CP Holdings, majority owner of Danubius Hotels and Trevor Osborne Property Group.
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