New Hotel for Central City Hamilton

News Release

Friday, 29 April 2005

New Hotel for Central City

A new 126 room hotel is planned to be built in central Hamilton.

The new Ibis hotel will be built on the carpark site beside the old Broadcasting House opposite the Novotel Tainui in Alma Street.

Chairman of Hamilton Riverview Hotel Limited Tony Marryatt and Tainui Group Holdings Chief Executive, Steve Murray, announced the plan today.

Mr Murray said the decision to go ahead was exciting for the company, Hamilton and the whole region and that the plan was still subject to resource consent and other requirements being met.

The Hotel will be built by Hamilton Riverview Hotel Limited, the joint venture company which owns the Novotel Tainui. The three partners in the venture are Tainui Group Holdings, Hamilton City Council and the international hotel company, Accor.

Mr Murray said Tainui Group Holdings, which owns the land on which the hotel will be built, was pleased to be involved in another significant venture to further boost economic activity in the region.

Councillor representative on Hamilton Riverview Hotel's board, Peter Bos, said the Novotel Tainui venture has proved to be an excellent investment for the city.

"It has played a pivotal role in the development of Hamilton as a conference venue and a commercial centre as well as driving regional growth in tourism," he said.

"The partnership between Council, Tainui Group Holdings and Accor is ideally suited to build this market further for the ongoing benefit of the city."

Mr Thomas van Vliet, Acccor's Regional General Manager for New Zealand and the South Pacific, said his company was pleased to be involved in another major Hamilton project.

"Our Ibis and Novotel brands complement each other in many cities around the world. The Hamilton market is now mature enough for another central city hotel aimed at a different market niche."

The seven story hotel will target the more budget-conscious traveller market and offer excellent and affordable accommodation in the heart of the city.

"Most of the city's accommodation is located some distance from the central business district and it is an area which has developed into a lively entertainment area with a wide range of restaurants, cafes, bars and, of course, the Casino," Mr van Vliet said.

Mr Murray said his company's experience with the Novotel Tainui and the developments that have taken place in the city over recent years have given Tainui Group Holdings the confidence that there are still good growth opportunities for Hamilton in both the tourism and business markets."

"Successful hotels like the Novotel Tainui help to generate business for all sectors of our community so this is another key landmark in the development of the city."

Mr Marryatt said construction of the new hotel was likely to begin mid this year this year with completion targeted in time for the Fieldays event in June 2006.

ends

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