The developer behind a scheme to convert a vacant office building into a new hotel has launched an appeal against the project being refused planning permission.

Ay Ay Holdings Bermuda Ltd, which proposed turning Victoria House into a nine-storey hotel referred to as Sankofa House, had requested a “soft” refusal so that the matter could be brought to the minister responsible for planning on appeal.

In an appeal letter written by architect Vanessa Daniel, of the consultancy firm HDH Ltd, the developer argued that while the plan was rejected because of its number of storeys and lack of setbacks — buffer areas that protects buildings or structures from the road — the overall height is allowed under the 2015 City of Hamilton Plan.

The appeal also argued the lack of setbacks on the building’s upper floors was an important component of the project.

“The proposal is to convert an existing abandoned, uninhabitable office building located in the contemporary business district of the City of Hamilton into a 94-key hotel,” the appeal letter said.

“In order for the conversion to be successfully viable, the adaptive-reuse project relies on a configuration of stacked repeating floor layout. This technique is essential not only for faster and easier construction, but most of all for a sensible approach to economic construction.

“Therefore, the revitalisation project would also involve increasing the height of the existing building by adding an additional habitable storey and ‘squaring-off’ the existing sloped setback floors to yield a more linear structure that allows for the repetition of identical floor plans at each level.

“This design approach is deemed crucial to ensure both feasible constructibility and economic viability within the City of Hamilton.”

The plans won support from the Corporation of Hamilton, which noted that the project stood to create a “significant opportunity to enhance the city and contribute towards developing a more vibrant urban environment”.

However, the application itself noted that the proposal failed to adhere to “several” policies of the City of Hamilton Plan 2015 and requested that the Department of Planning deny the application as a “soft refusal”, enabling the next steps to be pursued through an appeal.

While the project received an “obligatory refusal” from the Development Applications Board, a planning inspector said in a report that the Department of Planning was supportive of the redevelopment project.

The appeal letter, dated February 26, urged the project be given the green light, stating that there was a need for a business hotel in the City of Hamilton.

The developer said that the existing setbacks on the building reduced the potential of the building, but removing the setbacks and expanding the building vertically would make the project feasible.

“By increasing the number of storeys at Sankofa House, the square-foot cost of construction decreases,” the appeal said. “The return on investment improves and more hotels rooms are available for guests.

“In the feasibility studies process, it was determined that the fewest number of additional storeys required to make the project viable is one.”

Without the expansions, the appeal letter said the building would be able to accommodate a total of only 40 hotel rooms, fewer than half of what is being proposed.

“Naturally, fewer hotel rooms would translate into lower revenue for the hotel, which consequently would deem the project non-viable,” the appeal letter said. “It would also reduce the potential revenue stream to surrounding businesses and the city overall.”

The letter stated that the vertical expansion also allowed the creation of an open-air, ninth storey, which is shown above the proposed hotel rooms, and which would contain mechanical equipment and offer amenity space for guests.

“While the nine total storeys are not permitted under the City of Hamilton Plan 2015, the soon-to-be released City of Hamilton Plan 2024 relaxes the storey limit,” the appeal said.

“According to public presentations over the past 12 to 18 months and draft copies of the document, the height and storey restrictions will be eased in the City of Hamilton Plan 2024.

“Therefore, by the proposed completion of the project, after planning permission, building permit approval and construction, it is presumed that the City of Hamilton Plan 2024 would be enacted and the nine storeys would not be an issue or cause for rejection.”

The appeal also noted that there is precedent for allowing buildings to exceed the limits enshrined in the City of Hamilton Plan, highlighting the nine-storey Brookfield Place project on Front Street.

“The new building at 91 Front Street is situated in the Historical and Retail District, where the number of storeys is not to exceed five storeys, four at street level and yet, it is under construction and slated to be a total of nine storeys,” the letter said.