A HOTEL company behind major developments at Gatwick Airport and in Birmingham has purchased a Glasgow building which formerly housed a Royal Bank of Scotland cash-handling centre.

Bloc Hotels, which described the Dale House site opposite Queen Street Station as a “key gateway location”, aims to create a “high-tech, smart hotel that matches the aspirations of the area”.

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More than 20 offers were received for the site at 21West George Street, which has full planning consent to replace the existing 1980s building with a seven-storey hotel and retail space. The property has been purchased from LGIM Real Assets, a division of Legal & General Investment Management, which was advised by JLL.

Dominic Mayes, property director at Bloc, said: “We are really excited to have acquired this site and look forward to delivering Bloc Glasgow to this extremely vibrant part of the city. The property is in a prime location, directly opposite the recently redeveloped Queen Street Station.”

He noted the number of people using Queen Street Station was set to increase by 40 per cent, reaching 28 million annually by 2030.

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Mr Mayes added: “This is another defining moment in the company’s ambitious growth strategy, as we continue to expand into key gateway locations.”

Bloc has developed designer hotels at Gatwick Airport and in Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter. Construction is under way on the 25-storey Bloc Grand Central hotel next to Birmingham New Street station.

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Craig Westmacott, senior fund manager for Legal & General, said: “Since being listed for sale, Dale House has generated considerable interest from developers, investors and owner-occupiers for a variety of different uses. Having strategically secured valuable hotel consent on the site, we are pleased to have now sold the asset to Bloc Hotels, who will develop their hotel brand on this important Glasgow city-centre location.”