$30 million Waterfront hotel design unveiled in WA’s Albany
WA Premier Mark McGowan has released the design plans for a waterfront hotel in a popular tourist spot.
McGowan unveiled the plans for the $30 million Middleton Beach hotel on Friday with Lands Minister John Carey.
The hotel will be a luxury eight-storey, 66-room building operated by Seashells and will be the first hotel built in the region since the Esplanade Hotel was demolished in 2007.
The hotel is expected to bolster tourism and jobs in the Great Southern, despite potential construction delays due to builder and material shortages.
Prior to COVID-19, the area was one of Western Australia's most sought-after tourism destinations highlighted by sandy beaches and lush forests.
McGowan said the hotel was "the sort of thing any country town would kill for".
"(It's) a sympathetic design for the local environment, designed to ensure it attracts tourists from around the world," he said.
"This is exactly the sort of thing that regional communities like Albany need. Albany is a very, very attractive destination, a great tourism town and this will add to the tourism offering of this area.
"We're very hopeful that the hotel itself will open late 2023 … and if it's 2024 then so be it, but it's a great development."
The hotel will cost about $30 million.
"I think that is a huge investment for Albany, I think people realise that Albany is a premier tourist destination," John Carey said.
"People want to come here, stunning coast, great food, bar offerings and I think having another hotel of this quality on this beachfront is just incredible."
Irit Jackson, 16th August 2022
