Team celebrates topping out at £50 million mixed-use regeneration scheme

Morgan Sindall Construction has celebrated a key milestone at Project Medius, a landmark £50 million regeneration scheme in Leicester.

Construction work is progressing well; the concrete frame on the 10-storey Novotel hotel has been completed and work has begun on the outside façade cladding. The internal fit out of the hotel is also underway, with one sample room now installed to the required specifications.

Works on the office block are also on track, with internal fit outs underway and 85% of the cladding now in place.

The occasion was marked with the signing of a concrete column onsite, with the City Mayor, Sir Peter Soulsby and several members of the Morgan Sindall Construction & Infrastructure team in attendance on the day.

Set over a four-and-half-acre site, Project Medius is being delivered for Leicester-headquartered property group, Charles Street Buildings (CSB). The mixed-use development is an integral part of plans to regenerate Leicester city centre.

The site, located off Vaughan Way, will feature two major hotels. The Novotel has 154 bedrooms, including executive rooms and suites, a gym, banqueting facilities, meeting rooms and a ground floor feature bar and restaurant. The six-storey Aparthotel Adagio will offer 95 studio or one bed apartments.

The development will also provide 35,000 sq ft of space in a new five-storey office, a new public realm area called Great Central Square and a major highways and traffic management scheme.

Morgan Sindall Construction’s work is taking place alongside the regeneration of the former Leicester Central train station and creation of a new car park for the hotels and office, which CSB is undertaking itself.

Richard Frape, Project Director at Morgan Sindall Construction, said: “We’re incredibly pleased to reach this important milestone as we move ever closer to delivering this exciting project for the people of Leicester.
“Project Medius is set to play a central role in revitalising this area of the city. We look forward to continuing our collaborative efforts with everyone involved over the coming months as we deliver this once in a generation scheme.”

Joseph Murphy, Director, at CSB, said: “The progress that has been in made in constructing two new hotels, a new office block and new public realm in Leicester City Centre is very pleasing. Our ambitious regeneration plans, along with those of Leicester City Council, in this area are now having an impact on Leicester’s sky line and street scene.
“Completion of superstructure works for the Novotel and Adagio marks the next phase of tangible delivery of this transformative development and starts the countdown to the arrival of exciting new hotels, along with work and leisure facilities at No1 Great Central Square and Leicester Central.”

Thomas Dubaere, COO Northern Europe, AccorHotels commented: “Leicester is one of the locations around the UK where we have been expanding the presence of our brands to cater for the increasing demands of business and leisure tourism. The city boasts attractions such as its cathedral, football team, the National Space Centre and the King Richard III Visitor Centre, which has become a major international attraction, but is also at the heart of the burgeoning Midlands Engine.
“Novotel hotels and Aparthotel Adagio are ideal brands to cater for the differing requirements guests to this city will have, be that a quality hotel experience or the comforts of an apartment style room. This choice, combined with top class facilities including meeting rooms, a gym, a feature restaurant and bar, means that it will become a venue of choice for the city.”

Nicholas Northam, managing director for the UK at Interstate Hotels & Resorts, said: “We’re thrilled to have reached this key milestone in the creation of the new Adagio hotel and Novotel in Leicester.
“This development signifies a step forward for Leicester’s visitor offering, providing a choice of accommodation for both the leisure and corporate markets.
“We’re excited to now get started on the next phase of development and to move closer towards the site’s planned opening at the end of the year.”

City Mayor Sir Peter Soulsby said: “This is a very exciting development for Leicester and it’s wonderful to be able to celebrate the excellent progress being made.
“Once complete, this major privately-led regeneration scheme will help create a really attractive new gateway linking the city centre to the Waterside area. It is a vital part of our ambitious vision for this part of the city and represents a major step forward in realising the area’s enormous potential.
“Congratulations to CSB, Morgan Sindall Construction and all involved.”

Construction work is expected to complete by the end of 2019.

• For more information about this news release please contact Ellie Riddy or Jonathan Daly at Influential on 0161 935 8474 or email riddy@thisisinfluential.com