Development – Appraisals, Delivery Plans, Development Management, Partnerships and Regen Cos

Heritage & Listed Buildings

Site Specific Viability Assessments (VAs) for S106

Valuation

Selby District Council

Outline Planning Application

AspinallVerdi was commissioned by Selby District Council to review the case for ‘Very Special Circumstances’ in terms of the economic viability of a proposal to develop a spa building in the Green Belt at The Parsonage County House Hotel, Escrick, near York.

Very Special Circumstances

Our review of the evidence base for very special circumstances, included:

• the operational needs of the hotel - which requires a spa facility to ensure that it is not economically prejudiced in terms of the surrounding competition, and as a consequence;
• that the proposed development is viable and therefore sustainable.

Value Added

Our review included a detailed analysis of:

• the proposed development – including the capital costs of a part subterranean design;
• the hotel’s trading performance – to identify the financial trends;
• market analysis of the competition - in order to benchmark trading performance;
• a detailed viability appraisal – to assess the hotel’s operational needs.

We noted the structural shift in expectations where guests expect a minimum level of service based upon four-star rated competition with existing leisure and spa facilities.

The proposed spa and leisure development was intended to complete the hotel’s full service ‘offer’ and enable it to remain competitive in the marketplace.

We completed an economic viability assessment of the scheme using a bespoke monthly cashflow in order to calculate the net present value (NPV) and Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of the scheme. We found that the investment had the potential to generate additional turnover and profit for the hotel and was sustainable as a business.

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