Aim for new hotel at council HQ to be open in 2030

Plans to turn Derbyshire County Council's headquarters into a hotel are set to be submitted soon, with the aim of opening in 2030.

The council wants to form a partnership with a private developer to return the main building of County Hall in Matlock to its original use.

The site would be used as a hotel, wedding and business venue and would also include housing.

Early estimates put the cost of the scheme at around £130m, according to a budget report.

New images have also been released to give the public an idea of the council's vision for the Grade-II listed site.

The Conservative deputy leader of the council Simon Spencer said taxpayers will not foot the bill for the project.

"That [£130m] won't be public money," he said.

"This will be a partnership arrangement with the private sector to deliver a vision, and that vision will be comprehensive.

"If all goes according to plan, by 2030 you should be able to have afternoon tea on the terrace with a glass of champagne."

Spencer sees the project as relieving the "burden" of the annual £2m it costs to maintain the building.

The authority will put forward a budget for the next financial year in the coming weeks and it is expected to include around £19m of cuts to services.

It is hoped the investment for the local economy generated by the plans will bring in £50m a year as well as jobs opportunities.

Opposition councillors are broadly supportive of the plans.

The leader of Derbyshire Labour Joan Dixon welcomed trying to find an alternative use for the building.

However, she felt housing hundreds of county council staff there should be questioned in light of the government's plans to reorganise local councils.

She said: "I'm not convinced that investing in new office space that would commit any future council to leasing [them] is the right thing to the taxpayer at this moment in time.

"We don't know what the needs of the new councils are going to be and where their new bases are going to be."

Spencer says the plans reflect the changing way councils operate, such as the increasing use of AI and remote meetings.

He added: "We've got no choice. We've got to rationalise the way we use our buildings and our facilities.

"This building costs a huge amount of money to run. The taxpayers pay for it. We need to make sure in the future it is sustainable.

"It's an architectural gem in many respects...what we want to do is take it back to where it used to be."

Spencer says there has been "huge" interest from potential private developers.

As well as a hotel and events spaces, the authority wants to build a carbon neutral purpose-built facility for council staff in the grounds.

The council is consulting with residents and potential developers about the scheme with the aim of submitting an outline planning application next month.

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