Construction work on the development of the Beannchor Group’s new £4m Haslem Hotel in Lisburn Square is now under way.
The highly anticipated new 52-bedroom property will be the first hotel in Lisburn city centre. The hotel is tipped to open in spring 2020.
The Haslem will epitomise urban style and reflect the needs of today’s hotel guests, with a vibrant, contemporary open plan ground floor reception, lobby bar and restaurant, accessed from the central piazza. The development will also include a residents’ gym, conference room and an underground car park.
The property, which is aiming for 4* status, is an entirely new concept for Beannchor, which owns and operates some of Northern Ireland’s leading hotels and hospitality venues, including Belfast’s 5-star Merchant Hotel, Bullitt Hotel and eight Little Wing Pizzerias.
The food and beverage offering will focus on all-day casual dining for residents and non-residents, whilst spacious, well-appointed guestrooms will greatly enhance the accommodation offering in Lisburn city centre.
A development loan to support the delivery of the wider project, which includes flexible workspace, was provided by the Northern Ireland Investment Fund, managed by CBRE Capital Advisors on behalf of the Department of Finance and the Northern Ireland Strategic Investment Board. The Fund, which was launched in November 2018, provides debt finance for real estate, regeneration, low carbon and infrastructure projects.
Konstruct Interiors has been appointed as the main contractor for the project. Commenting ahead of work beginning this week, Managing Director, Martin Kernan, said: “This exciting new project is a great fit for our team; we look forward to working with Beannchor in the delivery of this new hotel for the City of Lisburn.”
Nicky McCollum, Development Director of Lisburn Square added: “We are delighted that construction of the Haslem Hotel has now started. Historically, Lisburn Square was regarded as a retail location but since Marcol took ownership in 2015, we have been working to re-position the scheme as a destination to eat, work, live and shop. The opening of Haslem will add to the eclectic mix of occupiers, with a number of other units within The Square also under negotiation.”
Will Church, Senior Director, CBRE Capital Advisors commented: “We are pleased to be funding the delivery of the Haslem Hotel, the first loan the Northern Ireland Investment Fund has made outside of Belfast. The loan supports a heavily underserviced hotel and flexible workspace market in Lisburn and boosts the regeneration of Lisburn Square, which is set to become an exciting retail, work and leisure destination.”
The Beannchor Group is Northern Ireland’s largest hospitality group. Its portfolio includes The Merchant Hotel, Belfast; Bullitt Hotel and The Dirty Onion in Belfast; The Hillside in Hillsborough and eight Little Wing Pizzerias in locations across Northern Ireland. Earlier this year, the Group completed a £350,000 investment in the refurbishment of popular bar and eatery, The National in Belfast’s Cathedral Quarter and a £500,000 refurbishment of The Merchant Hotel’s public bar, The Cloth Ear.
