Plans for a brand new 75-room Travelodge hotel in Highbridge have been unveiled this week, with a cautious welcome being given by the town’s Chamber of Trade.
The plans from ERC Developments reveal it intends to build a hotel with 75 bedrooms, 75 parking spaces, and a built-in cafe/bar, on vacant land to the east of Bennett Road on the Isleport Business Park.
The four-storey hotel will create five full-time jobs and 16 part-time roles if it gets approved.
It would be located next to the town’s planned new Aldi superstore, pictured in the plans below, which was approved by Sedgemoor District Council in May.
Mike Murphy, Chairman of Highbridge Chamber of Trade, gave a cautious welcome to the scheme this week. He told Burnham-On-Sea.com: “Travelodge have identified a gap in the market and while it would create new jobs in some roles such as cleaning, reception and food, I do have concerns.”
“An Aldi supermarket, a McDonalds take-away and a Travelodge here on the site could be the start of an out-of-town retail development which would take people away from our town centres.”
“Hotels like this attract transient people travelling through the area, rather than long stayers, and they don’t offer entertainment facilities or conference space that would be welcome.”
Sedgemoor District Council is welcoming comments on the application – reference number 11/17/00096 – until the deadline of August 25th when it will be considered by councillors.
Rumours about a new hotel coming to the site were first reported by Burnham-On-Sea.com here earlier this year when both Premier Inn and Travelodge were linked to the site.
