Soho to restore Queens Hotel to Leicester Square

An office block on a prime site on Leicester Square, WC1, is set to be restored to its former glory as a hotel.   Landlord Soho Estates has teamed up with leisure giant Whitbread to turn Queens House into an 84-bedroom Premier­ Inn.   The £6m plan to transform the 24,000 sq ft of offices on the upper floors of Queens House was submitted to Westminster council last week.   The 1890s-built block – which is also home to a casino, restaurant and nightclub, which will be retained – was originally the 100-bedroom Queens Hotel.   The upper floors of the Portland stone building – next door to the Empire cinema – were converted to office use in 1936. It would be the third hotel on the £360m estate owned by the family of the late Paul Raymond.   Stephen Cropper of Premier Inn’s retained agent, Cropper & Co, said: “This hotel would be one of the only hotels with direct views of Leicester Square.”   Paul Whalan, head of estates at Soho Estates, said that the group had been working for three years on plans to bring the property back to its former use.   However, Soho will have to seek a new HQ as it is currently based in the building.   The redevelopment of Queens House – which, subject to consent, is scheduled to open in spring 2012 – also forms part of Westminster council’s long-running­ ambition to overhaul and upgrade London’s busiest tourist­ spot.   Irish developer McAleer & Rushe will next year open a trendy 192-bedroom W hotel on the corner of the square as part of its redevelopment of the former Swiss Centre, while Criterion­ Capital, owner of the nearby Trocadero, has plans to turn part of the complex into a 495-bedroom pod hotel.   Soho Estates paid £12m for Queens House in 1995.   Gerald Eve is advising on planning.   samantha.mcclary@estatesgazette.com   To access all EGi news stories and commercial property data sign up for a free trial today, or visit the subscription options page to find out more.