The Birmingham Grand Hotel

[Erebus555]

Well, as already done on Colmore Row, they could use a technique called facadism, which I know Bio is not a fan of! Basically, you demolish the building, retaining the facade and build a modern structure incorporating the original facade. It is not very popular with conservation groups, obviously, but is usually supported by the council and government (if it gets deferred to a department) as it gives a building new economic life when it might not have had it with the original structure and layout.

[feltip]

Give it to Urban Splash to work with. Look what they have done with the Fort and Rotunda in Birmingham and their other work nationally. They're even moving into hotels.

Facadism would be my last palatable option if it came up as last option but I would suggest they try and keep the grosvenor dining room as part of facade. Not sure what they would use it for depending on what rest of scheme was but that is a key reflection on the building.

[Spread]

Facadism wouldn’t really work or I suspect they would have already done it as they had a potential prelet. I am told the problem is that the floors do not line through and that you would get floors running through windows etc.

[dreamtime]

This building just been in danger makes my heart shiver I Know in needs doing up or whatever but they must not flatten it, I hate hortons with a passion if that is there goal. There is enough souless buildings constantly on the rise and walking here the other day just made me get a time warp feel, Its a nice area around St philips.

[liberty57]

This building is simply the best historic building we have, its awesome, long may it survive and find a developer to restore it to its former GRAND status. This building could be a tourist attraction in its own right!

[Biosonic]

Hortons cannot be allowed to let this go to wrack and ruin.

I might fire one off to The Post.

[ShavenHeaden]

Originally Posted by Biosonic

Hortons cannot be allowed to let this go to wrack and ruin.

I might fire one off to The Post.

Hopefully you mean a letter? Or do you have a crush on Terry Grimley?

[Biosonic]

[NeilM]

[U475 Foxtrot]

Birmingham's Grand Hotel may become offices and shops
May 2 2008 By John Duckers, Business Editor

The fortunes of Birmingham's Grand Hotel could be about to change for the better, it has been revealed.

New chairman of Hortons' Estate, Richard Samuda, said "good progress" was being made on trying to give the building a new future. But it is unlikely it will stay as a hotel – he suggests it will be turned into offices and retail.

However, Mr Samuda could not give any timeframe on an announcement, although he said the project was "moving forward".

The majority of the building has been empty for years, but discussions between Hortons, the city council and English Heritage are on-going.

Mr Samuda said it was a very complex building, sitting as it does on the 'Birmingham hill'. That meant difficulty sorting out levels sufficient to achieve the necessary floor plates.

Mr Samuda, previously a non-executive on the Hortons' board, has succeeded Michael Horton following his retirement last month after seven years in the post and 44 years as a director.

He heads a company with a portfolio of development and investment property valued at more than £200 million.

Mr Samuda, who is a chartered accountant based in Birmingham, is a former advisory partner at KPMG specialising in regeneration and retail.

He advised Hortons whilst he was at KPMG and since his appointment to the board in October 2004.

Rob Blyth, chief executive of Hortons' Estate, said: "Richard brings a wealth of experience to Hortons coupled with a wide knowledge of West Midlands business."

Mr Samuda said: "I am honoured to have been invited by the board to become Horton's chairman and to build on the successful platform Michael Horton has created.

"This is an exciting time for Hortons with a renewed mandate from its wide family shareholder base combined with market conditions which should play to the strengths of the business.

"In tough credit times we have gearing levels which are pretty sensible. We have the capacity to go to a higher level which would still be conservative."

He said Midland rentals were generally holding up. "There is no suggestion that they are about to fall off a cliff."

But he said it was definitely taking longer to close deals.

Asked about asset values, under pressure across the board in the property sector, Mr Samuda said Hortons had a quality portfolio.

And, with Hortons being a private company, it was not under the same pressure to sell.

Gearing, he emphasised, was the key which was way Hortons considered itself in a strong position in the current climate.

Hortons is stepping up its development activity and streamlining the investment portfolio.

This year has seen the company acquire development and investment opportunities in areas including Coventry, Solihull, Gloucestershire and Worcestershire as well as undertaking an office joint venture with Business Homes on a 3.52 acre site at Birmingham Business Park.

The company dates back to Isaac Horton when he first acquired the Midland Hotel – now the Burlington – in Birmingham's New Street in 1871.

http://www.birminghampost.net/birmin...5233-20851296/

[Biosonic]

A little reassuring. It is good to see EH are on the case.

It would make a nice department store. Or an hotel.

[U475 Foxtrot]

Yes, it even has the word hotel in it's name already

[Biosonic]

Not very Grand at the mo though

[VerticallyChallenged]

It sounds as if I'm the only one on this forum who's actually been in the Grand Hotel.
At the risk of boring you to death I visited many years ago when I was just 16years old and it certainly was impressive. The main memory from then is wood panelling everywhere, lots of the stuff. The hotel ambience was nothing like a modern hotel, the hush was so profound you could hear a whisper at 20ft and they had bellboys in red monkey suits in addition to porters dressed in what could only be described as green livery.
I wasn't of course a guest, just a maintenance trainee but I did get to see a bedroom (I sat on a bed and damn near drowned it was so soft) and sneaked a look in the ballroom which really was as ornately impressive as people say, mind you it was the first ballroom I'd ever seen.
One thing which did amaze me was the carpets in the main foyer - you would not believe the depth of the pile.
More significant however, I got to see the farther reaches of the hotel and remember being a bit surprised that the further away from the main posh areas at the front, the less salubrious the hotel seemed.
The deep pile carpets disappeared, there were stretches of worn corridor carpet, the walls felt sticky and worst of all there was a funny smell.
I suppose, looking back, the age of the building was showing with rising damp and general rot.
My view is that if the hotel is retained it should become a council-run museum rather than be knocked around and made into offices or retail units.
I've got to admit I'd forgotten how unique the place really is.

[feltip]

Did you get to see the well in the basement?

[fruit&nut]

I went in too VC. To some function or other, can't remember exactly what, but it is exactly as it's name suggests - Grand.

If it allowed to decay to oblivion it will be a disgrace, especially after the loss of the Queens Hotel at New St Station.

[VerticallyChallenged]

Originally Posted by feltip

Did you get to see the well in the basement?

No I missed that, was it a borehole/spring or an artisian well?
I wouldn't fancy ice cubes from there in my G&T.

[feltip]

Not sure. All i know is there was some kind of well there. There's also one in basement of Ibis on Ladywell walk from what i've read. The said well of the road name.

[Erebus555]

Ladywell Walk is the last remaining evidence that this area was actually called Ladywell. There was a large private baths there because of the abundance of water. Digbeth was quite a spot for wells as well, until the industry moved in and messed with the water table and polluted the water!

Interesting to know there's a well here though. Considering the geography of the site, I would not expect the water table to be so high. I'm guessing that the well is pretty damn deep (especially considering that the water table was lower when the building was constructed than it is now).

Might be worth contacting Horton's Estates about!

[VerticallyChallenged]

Originally Posted by Erebus555

Interesting to know there's a well here though. Considering the geography of the site, I would not expect the water table to be so high. I'm guessing that the well is pretty damn deep (especially considering that the water table was lower when the building was constructed than it is now).

Might be worth contacting Horton's Estates about!

That's what surprised me about a well at the Grand and made me wonder if the well source was a spring rather than accessing the water table. I would imagine the hotel is quite high compared with say, the bottom of Newhall Street.
Even there the water table hasn't quite reached basement levels though I suspect it's not far off by now.
Some years back, the place where I worked in Newhall Street was experiencing such a rapid rise in the water ingress at deep level we suspected there might be a burst water main somewhere so I had a sample of the water analysed fully expecting traces of fluoride etc but no such luck.
It was basically just ground water with fairly high levels of calcium carbonate.
I blame Davenports Brewery for closing down.