City Inn to build new hotel in Manchester

Hotel chain City Inn is to begin construction of a new £30m hotel in Manchester next January.

The 284-bedroom hotel will be part of the city's Piccadilly Place development and is expected to open in August 2006.

It is being financed through a joint venture with Bank of Scotland - the same arrangement as for City Inn four existing hotels, in Bristol, Westminster, Glasgow and Birmingham.

The chain is also understood to be looking at sites in Edinburgh and Leeds and assessing the prospects for openings in the USA.

David Orr, chief executive, said: "Since we opened City Inn Westminster there has been a greater realisation on a national level that City Inn is a brand that has captured the imagination of many and our Manchester announcement continues the story of the growth of a young and ambitious new brand for the UK."

City Inn Manchester will create 140 new jobs, the company said.

by Nic Paton

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