It follows the decision by the council last November to appoint administrators in relation to the developer of the new hotel at Fletton Quays.
As part of the administration process, a ‘closed’ procurement exercise, limited to companies with a legal interest in the hotel, took place earlier this year to identify a route to completion for the hotel. One bid was received as a result of the process.
In view of the offer received, and to allow officers time to consider the options available to the council, Cabinet members deferred a decision at a meeting in March to submit their own bid for the hotel.
The recommendation now being put to cabinet members at a meeting due to take place on Thursday, 30 May is for the submission of a credit bid. No new money would need to be spent to take ownership of the freehold of the hotel site and to protect the council’s investment.
A further report to Cabinet in the summer will set out options for next steps if the purchase of the hotel takes place.
Councillor Dennis Jones, Leader of Peterborough City Council, said: “This situation is one which we wish could have been avoided and it is most likely the hotel would now be open if it had not been for the Covid pandemic.
“Owning the hotel will allow us to see the development through to completion and benefit from the return of our loan and a fantastic new hotel facility for Peterborough. The alternative is that we walk away and lose most of, if not all of our investment.
“Having a Hilton hotel in the city would be a huge asset and therefore I am pleased that Hilton remains committed to the development and to Peterborough. We are working closely with Hilton and other partners as we plan the next stages.”
