South Marston Hotel and Leisure Club (From Swindon Advertiser)

Development

6:33pm Wednesday 4th November 2009 in Your News By Robert Feal-Martinez

The Millionaire owner of the newly re-named South Marston Hotel and Leisure Club (Nightingale Hotel), has shown real commitment to South Marston.

Paul Cripps purchased the hotel from the De Vere group and then leased it to the now dissolved Swallow Hotel Group. He was owed hundreds of thousands of pounds by Swallow, and took back ownership from the administrators. Those that know the Hotel will testify to the fact that it was in need of repair, and refurbishment on a grand scale.

Since September 2006 Mr Cripps has funded a major refurbishment programme of the complex, he has spent over one million pounds in a total refurbishment of the leisure club, the hotel bedrooms and finally the reception, bar and restaurant areas.

Speaking exclusively to this reporter Mr Cripps said, “ I was faced with selling the hotel for a substantial loss, making over 70 employees redundant or investing to bring it back up to scratch, it has been a huge investment and I am pleased with the results. But there is more to do”

The Hotel seems to be bucking the town centre trend of half empty hotels doing ‘basement’ price deals. “ I think we have a hotel to be proud of, at a time of economic uncertainty our rooms are full most of the week now, which is why I am planning to further develop the rooms. We already have planning for a forty bed extension from the old De Vere days.”

Asked how this would be funded Mr Cripps said, “I will be submitting a planning application to build fourteen, four bedroom luxury houses, on land behind the hotel. This is a low level development on about one hectare of land, which will make the development very spacious.”

As part of the development proposal Mr Cripps, intends, subject to the land owners consent, upgrade Manor Farm Lane into a substantive road. It is currently an unmade track with numerous pot holes, some being quite deep. He also intends to have a footpath and cycle way running parallel with the road, linking onto South Marston Recreation ground.

Mr Cripps has also stated his intention to offer to refurbish the changing facilities on the Recreation Ground, and add a kitchen facility, and improved showers. Asked why he said, “ I want my Hotel to be seen as an integral part of the village, we employ local people and by expanding the hotel we will be able to employ more, I have heard that the changing rooms leave a lot to be desired and if I can assist in this way I am happy to do so.”

I asked Mr Cripps, why he had opted for a low density , higher end housing development, “ It’s the type of houses the Parish Council and local residents would like built, as the Parish Council Chairman has made clear in his submission to Swindon Borough Council. These houses comply in every way with the ‘Swindon Standard’ policy of the Borough Council. Swindon Borough Council have also said there are insufficient executive style houses to encourage higher earners to settle within the Borough”

Having seen the specification of these houses and the proposed layout this reporter can testify to the fact that these would indeed fit in with South Marstons vision of sustainable, and manageable housing for the twenty first century.

Mr Cripps has shown he has vision, and commitment to South Marston, one can’t help thinking he could have just walked away from the Hotel, demolished it and just allowed the land value to rise.

As a resident of South Marston myself and the former Vice Chairman of the Parish Council, I sincerely hope that Councillors and residents get behind this application and secure the future of the Hotel, and future jobs for villagers, as well as facilitating a much needed improvement to the roads infrastructure that the Parish simply cannot afford to do.