Swallow flies in with airport revamp plan
The derelict airport in Liverpool's Speke district, which has stood empty for the past 15 years, looks set to become a Swallow hotel.
The 60-year-old building, famed for scenes of screaming Beatles fans on its terraces during the 1960s and where the Pope kissed the Tarmac in 1981, is to be revamped by property developer Neptune Developments. The Swallow Group, which already holds the management contract for a 146-bedroom hotel also owned by Neptune in Liverpool's city centre, is expected to manage the new hotel.
Work on the art deco building, which is a Grade II-listed property, is expected to begin within the next two months and to be completed within a year. The property has been granted planning permission for extensions to provide additional space for bedrooms.
Swallow, which has 38 hotels, is also planning a new-build 210-bedroom hotel close to the M1 motorway in Leicester. It is scheduled to open in 2001.
by Christina Golding