Knightsbridge: Sheraton Park Tower hotel wins bid for multi-million-pound refurb to rise higher over Hyde Park

Kensington and Chelsea Council’s planning committee approved the proposal during a speedy meeting on Thursday, April 3. The committee also agreed the public benefit of adding the extra floors and redeveloping the ground floor of the Sheraton Park Tower hotel outweighed any harm associated with it after neighbouring Westminster City Council objected to the plan.

Cllr James Husband, who chaired the committee, said: “It’s slightly unusual to think of a project having a regeneration element when its address is 101 Knightsbridge, but I can well see the improvements to the ground floor and first floor that are proposed are significant for people who live in the area.

“In terms of design and the height, I think we need to note the objections from Westminster City… [but] I’m inclined, on balance, to think that having a slightly taller building – I’m not even sure it is a harm. The building still looks fine. It’s a building of a time.”

He added: “When it was originally built, I’m sure it was viewed as an example of modernity and luxury hotel, but that was a long time ago.” The committee also said the “unusual tower structure” made building affordable homes on the additional floors unsuitable.

They also said some of the flats will have no windows. The Sheraton’s multi-million-pound refurbishment includes building eight residential flats and a new two-storey podium at ground floor. An underground public car park will be ripped out to make way for the large podium that will act as an entrance to the hotel with a plush first-floor terrace with canopy.

Sheraton also plans to remove a casino on the premises to free up more than 1,000 square metres of space for retailers and a restaurant. The number of hotel rooms will also be reduced from 271 to 240 in a bid to ‘modernise’ the 1970s tower. This includes increasing the provision of accessible hotel rooms from three to 12.

The refurb, which is set to cost over £100m, also includes building eight new three to four-bedroom apartments overlooking Hyde Park. These will be located above the hotel and form part of the ‘distinctly different’ six storeys the company is looking to add onto the tower.

The hotel currently comprises 16 floors with its body measuring 40 metres tall. With the approval granted, the height of the tower will now increase by 15 metres. A separate entrance for residents is being proposed along Seville Street.

The hotel chain is offering Kensington and Chelsea Council £16.5m in financial contributions to offset the lack of affordable housing. This is the second time in five years the hotel chain has asked Kensington and Chelsea Council to approve its plans to redevelop the tower.

In 2020, Sheraton was granted permission to increase the height of the building by four storeys, which included redeveloping the 16th and 17th floors and to create a new setback on the 18th floor. This would have added an additional 5m to the height of the building.