Vote highlights support for leisure offering in King William House

DEVELOPMENT: King William House

By Rick Lyon, Co-Editor

A public vote on the future of one of Hull’s key regeneration projects has highlighted its appeal to city centre visitors as a leisure destination, with new restaurants, cocktail and coffee bars proving more popular ideas than retail stores.

Developers Noble Invest turned to a public vote to influence plans for the commercial development of the King William House former 1970s bank building in Market Place.

The development has already benefitted from a multimillion-pound investment to convert the upper floors into modern, luxury apartments, with the aim now to provide attractive new offerings to city centre visitors on the ground floor.

The development is already home to a Tesco Express store, with The Federation of Sport – a new technology-driven sporting entertainment centre – also soon to open its doors, bringing a new experience attraction to the city.

Now, Paul White, director of Garness Jones, says the public vote has delivered an interesting insight into how people visiting Hull view King William House, and what ventures best suit that area of the city centre.

INSIGHT: Paul White, director of Garness Jones

“This has been a very worthwhile exercise by the owners and it perhaps reflects how people who visit Hull feel about this area of the city centre,” he said.

“King William House is in a great position next to the popular Trinity Market area, and nestled between the city centre, the Old Town and the Fruit Market, which has obviously become a destination for food and drink in recent times.

“These poll results suggest that people see it fitting into that developing ‘Old Town’ and Fruit Market experience, where there has been a growing mix of leisure attractions, bars and restaurants over recent years.

“It will certainly help us in our continuing talks with interested parties, as it provides some insight into public demand.”

Whilst a cocktail bar and sushi restaurant were the two most popular options in the public vote, also popular were a gym, a bakery/delicatessen and a coffee shop.

“I think this reflects the changing relationship people have with the city centre, and their reasons for visiting,” added Mr White.

“It is much more leisure-driven, and as a city we need to make sure we provide what people want. There has to be a mix of retail and leisure.

“Successful attractions help boost retail footfall and spend. We have seen that in main shopping centres, which have had to adapt and provide a mix of retail and leisure, and it is now spreading throughout the city.”