ANOTHER Bournemouth hotel is planning changes with a proposal for part-demolition and new flats on the site.

The New Westcliff Hotel at Chine Crescent is asking for ‘in principle’ permission to demolish one of two buildings and to replace it with a five storey block of 22 flats, 18 of them residential and four for holiday use.

The changes would result in the loss of seven parking spaces but planners say the would increase the number of cycle spaces to 40.

Application papers show the proposed demolition of No29 Chine Crescent, a building next to the main hotel. The two buildings were previously known as the Grosvenor Hotel and Dursley Chine Hotel.

The replacement flats would be made up of 8 one-bed and 14 two-bed.

The site is within the West Cliff and Poole Hill Conservation Area and lists the site as a ‘neutral building’ with no particular merits, largely due to the number of changes which have been made over the years from the time when they were built as Victorian Villas.

The application to BCP planners says the new building has been designed to “respond to the character and appearance of the Conservation Area … The scale, height, materials and architectural detailing has been sensitively considered to reflect the historic relationship of the plot with its immediate neighbours and wider context and fit sympathetically into the Conservation Area. The proposals include the enhancement of the landscaped setting of the plot which seeks to reflect the original character of the site and enhance the character of this part of the Conservation Area.”

Only one person has commented on the changes, John Green from Madeira Road, who says he does not object to the changes although warns about the risks of break-in to ground floor holiday flats and of bicycle theft which he says has been rapidly increasing in the area.

“I encourage any development such as this to consider the physical security guidance of the Police Secured By Design scheme,” he said.

A similar application is currently before planners for the Liston Hotel site at the junction of Boscombe Cliff Road and Wollstoncraft Road. It asks to demolish the building and replaced it with a four or five storey block of 33 flats.