New apartments could replace derelict block of garages in Stratford town centre
A FORGOTTEN site in the middle of Stratford could finally have new life breathed into it by one of Stratford’s oldest hotels.
The plot of land between Ely Street and Scholars Lane is hidden out of most people’s sight and is hardly a paradise lost.
Previous attempts to do something with its derelict block of garages and thriving wasteland have not got anywhere but now Hotel Indigo – forever the Falcon to many a Stratfordian – wants to spread its wings and add some variety to its business.
The aim is to build a separate block, known as The Lodge, which will have 23 apartments, targeting people who want to stay a little longer than the typical visitor.
Guests would use the current access off Scholars Lane and the three-storey, modern-looking block would fill the derelict space currently fenced off from the hotel’s open-air car park.
Being in the centre of town, there’s an interesting history despite its current state. Some people will remember access from Ely Street that’s now blocked off but the application shows that’s the road it has the strongest connection with.
The eastern part was a garden believed to belong to number 12 Ely Street but was sold to the Rose Inn, now number 14, in 1876.
The Falcon bought it in 1949 - after it had been neglected for a number of years – as a car park extension, then buying the garages from the Stratford Town Trust in 2015.
Both the trust and the hotel received permission to build on the site, for houses and a hotel extension respectively – but none of the permissions were carried out.
So now, as the Hotel Indigo, this new approach has been put forward to the district council.
The reference for it is 23/02970/FUL to get a closer look on the district council’s eplanning system and comments are wanted by Monday, 26th February.
It will be of particular interest to the properties that overlook the site from Scholars Lane and Ely Street, including Scholars Mews Care Home but the design and access statement included with the application stresses the impact on neighbouring properties has been given due consideration.
It concludes: ‘The proposals will deliver 23 long-stay apartments for Hotel Indigo to increase and diversify the current offering.
‘The development is in line with the district’s vision to grow the tourism industry in Stratford and enhance the town’s international standing.
‘Furthermore, the development of a brownfield plot which is currently unused and in a poor state of repair provides an opportunity to make efficient use of the land and improve the visual quality of the area’.
