A DEVELOPMENT group is interested in building a multi-million pound hotel in Dover.

A site is now being sought and one proposal is that it could be built on the Western Heights.

Dover District Chamber of Commerce chief executive Ray Haines said the chamber had long cherished an ideal to have a high-quality, four or five-star sizeable hotel in Dover.

“We believe this will satisfy some of the already existing demand, and of itself create an attraction for visitors,” said Mr Haines. “We have always fallen foul of the difficult problem of how such a project could be funded.

“We are very happy to report that the chamber has now got a hotel development group seriously interested and willing to put in sums quoted at £40 to £50 million to develop such a project if a suitable site can be provided.

“This is one of the catches, and the site we propose is somewhere on the Western Heights.

A suitable location there, commanding panoramic views of the Channel would, we believe, be what is required to stimulate interest and become an iconic feature for the town and its environs.

“An essential spin-off from this is that whilst funding the project, there is a mechanism for the hotel development to provide funding of significant amounts to restore some of the dilapidated and decaying heritage which is locked up on the Western Heights, particularly Drop Redoubt.

“We are currently involved in discussions with the district council, county council and various other significant bodies, in order to try to take this forward. If we can achieve a result, this will be a very significant development for the benefit of Dover.

“Alongside this goes a new hope from the Master Plan of the Port of Dover, a new and very worthwhile Interreg project which is being developed by Dover Town Council and the hoped-for benefits that would ensue from the new Local Plan in its new guise as the Local Development Framework.

“This latter we hope, will allow a much more progressive and less restrictive approach towards planning and economic development within the entire district.”