Quy Mill Hotel and Spa in Stow-cum-Quy expansion plans

The Quy Mill Hotel and Spa, in Church Road, Stow-cum-Quy has said at its current size it can not make enough money to support itself as a business.

The four-star hotel currently includes 51 guest bedrooms, but the business wants to build an additional 44 rooms.

Previous proposals to over double the size of the hotel to create a total of 110 guest rooms was rejected by South Cambridgeshire District Council last year.

The latest application hopes to address the district council’s concerns, whilst still expanding the hotel.

Some of the existing buildings within the grounds of the hotel are proposed to be demolished under the plans, but the Grade II listed 19th century watermill will be kept.

The hotel gym is proposed to be extended, as well as the restaurant, with a new “glass box” proposed to be built on to the side of the existing restaurant within the watermill.

The application said the design of the “glass box” would enable the extension to reflect the surrounding trees and vegetation, so it would appear to be “disappearing and not interfering with the image of the Grade II listed mill building”.

As well as ‘rejuvenating’ the hotel, the business said the expansion will offer a number of other benefits, including improved accessibility with 10 new accessible rooms, as well as a biodiversity net gain, with a minimum of 100 new trees planted.

Without the expansion the hotel said it will be put at “significant risk of loss making”.

In planning documents submitted to the district council it said: “The operation of the hotel is severely compromised by the physical constraints of its size and the arrangement of buildings, both internally and externally.

“The number of rooms at 51 is not sufficient to run a financially viable hotel business.

“Moreover the ad hoc nature of the accommodation layout creates challenges in the day to day operation and management.

“The hotel has a high ratio between staff and guests (number of bedrooms) in comparison to other competitor hotels – the hotel is simply not generating sufficient funds to support the business.

“The applicant has been proactive in finding a solution to ensure a sustainable long term future for this local business.

“To enable the hotel to compete in the local market changes have to be made to increase the number of rooms, enhance facilities, and improve the layout.

“This will increase the contribution the hotel makes to the pool of tourism accommodation available in Greater Cambridgeshire, support tourism and the visitor economy, and ensure the retention and creation of new jobs at the hotel for the long term.”