PLANS for a new 83-bedroom hotel at the site of the former Colwell shopping centre in Weymouth are to be unveiled today.

The proposals would see the site, on School Street, demolished and in its place a new hotel erected along with a ground floor restaurant and retail unit.

Read more: Proposed return of ferry services to Weymouth "a welcome boost"

A public consultation will be held between 10am and 4pm today at the entrance to the former indoor shopping complex. Representatives from Darryl Howells Planning Consultancy will be on hand to answer questions from the public.

The site opened in the 1980s and was Weymouth’s first ever indoor shopping centre.

In 2015 plans were approved for the site to be demolished and replaced with 23 flats and two ground-floor shops but that proposal didn't go ahead. In 2017 new plans were given the go-ahead to turn the location into ‘Weymouth’s answer to Portobello market’ and it re-opened as ‘School Street Plaza’. That closed in 2019 and there were renewed calls for the venue to be demolished.

At present the new proposals for the site are conceptual meaning precise costs aren’t yet known but the planning consultants representing the owners said: “There will be full time and part time employment opportunities in hotel management, catering, maintenance and servicing areas.”

Read more: Planning battle over Colwell shopping centre in Weymouth

In February 2020, amid a planning battle over the proposed demolition of the Colwell Centre, agents said the building suffered from “a poor quality red brick façade that features replica historic bay windows and features the use of incongruous materials on the side elevations. As such it is considered that the property has a negative impact on the character and appearance of the conservation area. Therefore, the loss of the property is considered to be acceptable, on the basis that redevelopment of the site is done to a high standard in-keeping with the prevailing historic character.”

Planning consultants are encouraging the public to review the proposals and offer opinions that can then be presented to Dorset Council once the application is finalised. There will also be the opportunity to provide written feedback on the proposals.

The consultation will take place between 10am and 4pm today.