PLANS for a seven-storey hotel have been submitted as part of a major redevelopment project.

Premier Inn, which already has a hotel opposite the proposed site, at Freeman’s Place, in Durham, as well as others on the outskirts of the city, wants to open at Milburngate.

A deal was announced earlier this year between Premier Inn and Arlington Real Estate, which part owns the site with the Richardson family.

An application has now been submitted for the new venue, which, if approved, would be built next to Milburngate bridge and also includes two commercial units.

The hotel would have 92 bedrooms, spread over the top four levels.

The developers already have permission to build a mixed used development, with leisure, retail, financial and professional services, office, food and drink and residential units.

The location has been chosen because of the proximity to the A690, as the hotel will be a sealed unit with no opening windows so will not be affected by noise and pollution.

The hotel would not have any dedicated parking so future customers would have to pay to use the public car park, which is part of the wider Milburngate scheme.

A statement by the company said: “The proposed hotel and overall redevelopment of the site will bring wider benefits to the area, providing an opportunity for inward investment, facilitating the provision of local jobs, riverside regeneration and aiding social, economic and physical regeneration.

“The proposed development is an exciting opportunity to regenerate this prominent gateway location on Milburngate Bridge and bring this site up to the same high standards as the rest of the riverside.”

The developers say the scheme will help fill the gap in the market for overnight accommodation, identified in the Durham Tourism Management Plan.