Studland hotel owners in new bid to build holiday resort
- Published
Knoll House has been a hotel since 1931
A company seeking to redevelop a Dorset seaside hotel says its plans have been completely redesigned since being refused permission last year.
A revised bid to turn Knoll House Hotel in Studland into a holiday resort will be considered on Wednesday after previous applications were turned down.
Kingfisher Resorts said it had sought to address past reasons for refusal.
But officers at Dorset Council recommended the plans for refusal, due to their "significant adverse effects".
The latest proposals were said to cost in the region of £60m and involved the demolition of many of the existing buildings on the site, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
Kingfisher said it aimed to create a high-end luxury resort, employing about 200 staff and accommodating about 280 guests.
'More efficient'
A company statement: "As the stewards of this beautiful site, we wish only to improve and enhance the current provisions of the hotel to enable Knoll House Hotel to thrive.
"Without significant investment, the hotel will continue to deteriorate into disrepair, and we believe that Purbeck and Dorset overall deserve better.
"Since our last planning submission determined a year ago, we very much took on board concerns raised by members, Natural England, the National Trust and AONB [Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty] representatives and as a result created a completely redesigned and more efficient scheme."
It said this included "less accommodation units, more landscaping, increased sustainable features and an overall lower impact to the environment".
In a report, planning officers said the development would "compromise the special qualities" that underpin the designation of the AONB.
According to Kingfisher's website, Knoll House was built at the turn of the 20th Century as a summer retreat for a member of the Bankes family of Kingston Lacy.
It was later used as a summer let before being turned into a hotel in 1931.
The Eastern Area Planning Committee is due to meet on Wednesday at 10:00 GMT.
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