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The old Leigh Hotel site has become overgrown after being closed for about a decade.
The derelict heart of Leigh looks set to be revived as the old Leigh Hotel site has been sold to a couple looking to develop the land.
Wellington builder Alan Macdonald and his wife Jasmine bought the 0.8-hectare property, which takes up half a block in the town centre, after buying a bach opposite the site last year.
“We kept looking at the derelict site wondering what uses it could be put to,” Mr Macdonald says. “It was clearly an unloved spot in a critical, central part of town, and we felt it gave the area a slightly run-down feel.”
The couple is now going to the community for ideas on what the site could include.
In a public letter to be printed in the Leigh Rag this month, Mr Macdonald appeals for proposals for the site.
“We have ideas for a range of activities on-site, and we are currently working through the design/consenting process. Once we get a little closer with more concrete plans, then we would like to come up and hold a public meeting for discussion, feedback and hopefully community support…we would be most interested to know what the residents of Leigh would like to see on the site and whether anyone has a need for some type of commercial space that we could include in our plans. This could include shops, shared offices, art or hobby workrooms, or any other type of commercial space consistent with the Council zoning of the site as ‘mixed business’.”
Mr Macdonald says he plans to renovate the decrepit hotel, which will likely include accommodation, however he ruled out opening a bar.
“We want to use the site to build visitor numbers into Leigh and be complementary to the businesses already there.”
He hopes the development will open by mid-next year, but further buildings will likely be constructed over the next two years.
“It won’t be an intensive development. It needs a significant area for waste water disposal so there will be a lot of trees and gardens.”
The hotel requires significant work, but is structurally sound, he says.
“It’s been closed for 10 years and it’s been completely trashed. It’s basically a shell. But structurally the floors and roof and walls are structurally sound and it is designed for the beautiful sea views with panoramic windows.”
