The owners of the former Ocean Hotel have announced that the building will not return to use as a hotel following a destructive blaze last week.
As previously reported by Island Echo, an arson investigation was started by Hampshire Constabulary following the incident on Saturday (8th May) that saw 8 fire appliances and 2 aerial ladder platforms, as well as more than 50 firefighters, tackle the fire.
Phoenix Commercial Property Development (PCPD), who purchased the site just 3 weeks ago, confirmed that it is highly unlikely the site will return to hospitality use, with the most likely outcome for the building being the transformation into a ‘mixed use commercial and residential scheme’.
The property company has maintained that the site had been properly secured following its transfer in ownership, with a statement reading:
“At the time of the tragic fire, PCPD had owned the Ocean Hotel for little over 2 weeks, having purchased the property as part of a portfolio of assets from the joint administrators of the former Carlauren Group.
“It was a condition of the purchase that the site was re-secured by the sellers. Our agents confirmed that this had taken place immediately following completion of the sale.”
The 97-bedroom hotel had recently been home to a group of heritage activist squatters intent on making sure the historic building was preserved. The current owners, PCPD, expect the Kings Head portion of the site to be maintained as a hospitality asset.
Well what a surprise (not)…..
Look out for planning permission…
Loads of flats….
Much more profitable than a Hotel ….
It all went to plan then will not return to use as a hotel but will become a block of flats
How about the council refusing planning permission and ordering the owners to restore the building to a hotel and get Sandown seafront looking like it should do.
Oh ,what’s that noise, Mmmm pigs flying.
Refusing planning permission would likely result in the site being left in its current state for many years to come. Sandown has enough hotels. Better for the council to try to negotiate more commercial for the seafront. It needs more high quality restaurants and shops. Honestly, it is about time this town moved on. Trying to save buildings for the sake of it just results in limited growth.
What a surprise lol !!!
you got turned down for planning so you burnt it down to get your own way…..
Same same bs, why was there no 24 hour on site security, needs an independent public inquiry to obtain whom benefits from such a misfortune,as it is now fact that it was no accident! Thank god that the new owners were insured (sic) !
Well isn’t that a confidence. All part of the master plan to get it into flats.
They bought it three weeks ago, and it burns down, and oh they’re going to change the use on it?
How remarkably CONVENIENT
Come on! Owners never wanted it for a hotel.flats make way more money.1000%obvious
Hope the person paid too do it was payed Well!
Actually… Flats will be incredibly hard to sell and they are likely to go bust again waiting for buyers. Sandown is a mess who would want to live here permanently. Its all back to front.
No surprises there beats applying for planning permission. Very quick plan on what to do with it next. Suspicious
Will be a dementia home soon 3k+pm
How convenient for them.
What a surprise.One of the oldest tricks in the planning permission books.
I said exactly that 2hrs ago flats more profitable than hotel …
Still waiting for approval !!!!
quite a few comments get ‘lost’ at the moment.. strange stuff eh??
Sure do when I complained they said it’s checked by a computer system ….
So if it doesn’t like a certain word it ousts the comment !!!!!
I suppose the only way now to mitigate the loss of the Hotel, and the adding of flats, is to allow it all, but with a carefully crafted Section 106
planning agreement that sees the developer make a significant contribution to the council and community to offset the effect on the local infrastructure. Ill say that again, significant contribution!, not peanuts! Mr Ward, you have been tasked!All a bit obvious, but happened much quicker than I thought! Hope the block of flats looks better than the monstrosity called the Premier Inn along the road
Phoenix commercial property developments ..a company that only came into existence on the 8th feb this year. Run by Steven Purvis with an address in morpeth, Northumberland.
there is a charge document filed which refers to the Ocean hotel as IW85510 and the Auckland house hotel in shanklin as IW84667 – there are two other properties in the south west listed in the doc -one is a hotel in torquay and the other is a care home that was forced to close in 2016 after the BBC panorma team secretly filmed abuse of residents taking place – Clinton house in truro road, St Austell.
This individual is only going to turn these into benefit hutches.
Yes and if turned into such flats, then hundreds more unemployed people as fewer jobs here.
This short boom for British holidays will soon end, once Europe re opens for Holiday business.
They will be more keen than us to draw over wallets and purses on the continent, as, unlike here, their dole is far less.
So one bad Summer and our IW could become just a dossers dormitory. Very sad to see.
The clue is in the owning company name “Phoenix”, a block of flats rises from the ashes.
Phoenix Commercial Property Development, who bought the site, what an apt name, and from the ashes shall rise a shiny eyesore of another block of flats.
Phoenix Commercial Property Development – rising from the ashes!
If the site had been made secure as they say, non one should have been able to enter and start a fire.
SO site was NOT secure, will that make the insurance invalid?
Am not surprised that a change of use planning application will be made.
Maybe they should look into other Pcd or whatever have conveniently had fires. How did it get so intense at that time of day and no one noticed, funny that fire alarms work after , 2 call outs to fire alarms being heard !. Maybe council will ask for it to be demolished and either a park or Ice rink.
Ok then refuse the planing permission. Buildings where arson is suspected should be confiscated by the local authority and sold for the public good after the original owners have restored it, without compensation or recompense.
Well, I would never have believed that.
Umm why does this smell fishy, owners take it over, then 3 weeks later it’s on fire, then all of a sudden it’s for residential use
In the 1970s a similar thing happened to a grade II listed warehouse in London’s Docklands. The owners were made to rebuild it as it was. Why can’t the Council insist on the same?
How do they get away with it, what a bunch of crooks.
As others have already commented on – OMG – what a convenient situation AND the name of the Company – Phoenix!! Really!!?? Jeez, they have almost ‘dobbed themself in’.