Plans revealed for 'aparthotel' in Bradford city centre
The 32-room hotel, which also includes four ground floor shops, is planned at the junction of Thornton Road and Listerhills Road
PLANS to build a “contemporary boutique aparthotel” on the edge of Bradford city centre have been revealed.
The 32-room hotel, which also includes four ground floor shops and rooftop café with “panoramic views across Bradford, has been planned for a triangle of land at the junction of Thornton Road and Listerhills Road – a site that has a complicated recent planning history.
Applicants Mi7 Developments says the development would be “strategically positioned to serve students, visiting academics, professionals, and tourists.”
The application was submitted to Bradford Council shortly before Christmas, with a decision expected in the Spring.
The development could create 10 full time and 20 part time jobs in an area of the city that has been blighted by vacant sites and derelict buildings in recent years.
The small triangular site has recently been part of an application to transform this area of Thornton Road.
Plans to build over 300 flats, shops, a petrol filling station and drive thru café on three neighbouring sites, including this one, were approved by Bradford Council in 2023.
But those plans were thrown into doubt when the largest of the three sites – a former car park on Thornton Road, was announced as the new home of an energy centre.
Work on that building is well underway.
The planned drive thru will be a Starbucks, and the construction of that part of the development is almost complete, and plans for another drive thru restaurant on the site were also recently approved.
There is also a live planning application seeking permission to build a data centre on that site.
The triangular site the new application refers to was itself was subject to another recent planning application – for a vintage van to be set up there as a street food business for a two-year period.
Those plans were approved in 2023, and since then a static café has been built on the site.
The new planning application says: “Positioned on a prominent triangular plot along Thornton Road, the aparthotel is designed to enhance the visual character of the area and strengthen pedestrian connections between the University Campus and the City Centre.
“Several parcels of land within the Listerhills Triangle have remained undeveloped, with multiple applications submitted over the past decade.
“Part of the site now accommodates an Energy Centre, with the remainder earmarked for complementary residential and commercial uses.
“The proposed aparthotel forms part of this wider regeneration vision, introducing high-quality short-stay accommodation that supports both the University and the City Centre.
“The scheme is strategically positioned to serve students, visiting academics, professionals, and tourists, contributing to the local economy of Bradford and strengthening the area’s identity as a vibrant learning and innovation district.”
Referring the unusual shape of the small plot of land the development would be built on, it says: “The TriResi Boutique Aparthotel has been designed to make efficient use of a compact triangular site.
“The concept responds directly to the geometry of the site, producing a distinctive architectural form that engages all street frontages.
“The design brings together retail and café uses at ground floor level, serviced accommodation above, and a rooftop café and terrace, creating an animated, multi-layered building that remains active throughout the day and evening.
“The client’s vision is to create a unique, intimate, luxury offer that provides high-quality accommodation within a carefully designed space.
“Each unit delivers comfort, privacy, and contemporary character, combining the independence of apartment living with the sophistication of a boutique hotel experience.
“The rooftop level houses a food and café unit with an outdoor terrace, providing panoramic views across the city.
“The space offers both social and leisure value, complementing the building’s hospitality function and contributing to its identity as a local destination.”
Plans to build a 104-bed aparthotel on Sunbridge Road were approved by Bradford Council in February.
The Listerhills application says this and the planned City Village development show there is a direction of the city centre moving towards more of a mix of residential, retail and leisure. It says: “Complementary developments, including the approved Sunbridge Road Aparthotel for 104 beds and the High Point residential conversion reinforce this direction of change.
“Both projects illustrate increasing investor confidence in Bradford’s city-centre living and hospitality markets.”