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said there was a real gap in the market for boutique hotels. He said: "This would be a fantastic opportunity for our group and for Liverpool.
"We could
provide a secure future for the building which would be developed to the highest possible standards."
However, the council plan to save the centre by
making it the home of the North West National Dance Centre.
Liverpool City Council's executive board are now starting negotiations to see if it can
compulsorily purchase the building so it can be turned into a dance studio. It would have dance and theatre rehearsal space, studios and facilities for
dancers to meet and perform.
A council spokesman said: "We may consider issuing a compulsory purchase order on the building.
"We are at a stage where
a preliminary application was submitted, but changes need to be made because we need to be careful that any changes are in keeping with the character of the
building.
The dance studio was one of the ideas put forward for the centre but we need to look at a range of options."
The Wellington Rooms were
designed by Edmund Akin as assembly rooms for the Wellington Club in 1815-1816.
It was built with the purpose of providing a venue for balls and other
entertainment and was designed to attract Liverpool's most "respectable and fashionable" residents.
Merseyside business leaders last night backed the
developers' scheme for the property, which would involve alterations to the building, including an upwards extension to accommodate hotel guests.
Frank
McKenna, chairman of private sector lobby group Downtown Liverpool In Business, said: "This building is in a key location, and is in urgent need of
redevelopment and restoration."
"A group of Liverpool companies with a track record of delivery have the ideas and the financial package to deliver a
truly fabulous project."
source....
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