Developer hopeful for conclusion to eight year planning saga over £20m Portstewart hotel

An eight-year planning saga over a multimillion pound north coast hotel proposal could finally be resolved this week.

Causeway Coast & Glens Borough Council’s planning committee is expected to sign off on the recommendation to approve the £20 million Merrow Hotel and Spa in Portstewart on Wednesday.

First proposed in 2016, C&V Developments Ltd has faced a number of legal challenges to its hotel project, primarily led by TUV leader Jim Allister.

Despite the site not being in his constituency, Mr Allister, who is now the MP for North Antrim, has been a longstanding objector to the plans.

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The TUV leader mounted a successful judicial review challenge in 2019, where it emerged that an easement over lands at the entrance to the proposed hotel site had been granted for £1 - without a valuation having first been secured by the council.

Concern over the way the local authorities dealt with land disposals prompted a probe by the north’s Local Government Auditor.

In November 2023, Mr Allister’s latest objection concerned “a sliver of land”, which he said belonged to a third party, which had not been consulted.

It prompted further delays in the planning process, with the landowner eventually withdrawing her objection in May 2024.

C&V Developments responded by reiterating the company’s commitment to the 119-bedroom hotel.

A source familiar with the project said eight years on, the applicant’s commitment has not waned.

The hotel project is due to once again go before Causeway Coast & Glens planning committee on Wednesday, where councillors will be asked to consider a proposal from officials to approve the plans.

The site of the proposed hotel is located close to the start and finish line of the North West 200.

A report presented to the planning committee ahead of Wednesday’s meeting said Mervyn White, events director for the famous road race, submitted a representation of support for the project in November 2023.

The report contains a summary of the letter, which highlighted the demand for premium hotel accommodation for those associated with the NW 200 event.

Mr White said it will enhance the race week experience, with the office and exhibition space providing a permanent home for the NW 200 team “and allow promotion of races to a global audience throughout year”.

To date, the Merrow Hotel proposal has attracted 188 letters of support and 141 letters of objection.

The latest objectors include The Anchor Bar in Portstewart, which claimed the hotel would result in a loss of business, with the availability of parking at the new site making it “more appealing to guests”.

In response, council officials said: “While the proposal may have an adverse impact on the business of the specified town centre premises, this is outweighed by the wider employment, economic and tourist benefits arising from the proposal.”