St Catherine's Terrace Market Report
Proposed Apartment Development St Catherine's Terrace Port Erin
Further to our recent negotiations and discussions in relation to your purchase of the former International Hotel School, you have asked me to comment on the proposed use of the properties and the possible redevelopment.
Having been involved with the building for some time with the International Hotel School, it was becoming abundantly obvious that the building had reached the end of its useful economic life, and that refurbishment was no longer a realistic option.
The owners of the Hotel School had themselves considered a number of options including refurbishment of the building either as apartments, or as a hotel, however, due to the structural problems within the property, and the extensive amount of work required to refurbish and upgrade the accommodation to the necessary standards, these options were not found to be financially feasible.
The obvious use for this site was redevelopment as a permanent apartment block, with on site car parking and a modern purpose built specification, lifts and a new modern fabric.
In the current market, we would expect a significant demand for good sized modern purpose built apartments of this type, and believe they would follow on from the success of the previous schemes along Port Erin Promenade. The location itself is ideal in being only a few steps walk from the main retail centre of the town, and therefore ideally suited, particularly to older people requiring accommodation on the level and within easy walking distance of amenities. We would also expect the accommodation to be attractive to professional couples and individuals seeking modern easy manageable accommodation in an elevated setting with superb sea and coastal views.
In our opinion, we would suggest that this is the most suitable way of redeveloping this site, and catering for the increasing demand for apartment living on the Island. As indicated previously, the existing building is beyond refurbishment, and we are unaware of any realistic demand for older style hostel or hotel accommodation in this area.
Yours faithfully
Mark Grace, BSc, MRICS
