Flooding fears over proposed site of hotel

A four-star hotel could be built on the site of a car park, despite claims it is vulnerable to flooding.

Spelthorne Borough Council has agreed to lease the land at Bridge Street in Staines to the Arora hotel group, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

The firm says it plans to submit an application for a hotel.

The Environment Agency (EA) has warned the site is located in a high risk flood zone, but the council said the risk can be mitigated.

A council spokesperson said: "Site-specific technical, design, and engineering solutions can be developed... to mitigate flood risk and enable delivery of this brownfield site."

The EA wrote to the council in July, asking it to "consider a less vulnerable use" of the land.

The new development will be restricted to a specific area and no taller than 82ft (25m), according to council documents.

In October, the council agreed to withdraw the site from its local plan- meaning the land has not been allocated for development- citing the EA's letter in June.

A spokesperson for the Riverside Residents (Staines) Coalition, which is opposed to the development, said: "A major concern will be whether foundations for the building will increase flood risk given the massive quantities of water that flow through the gravel substrate on which the site sits."

Surinder Arora, Chairman of the Arora Group, said: "We genuinely believe that the area needs the introduction of a new four-star hotel development.

"The hotel will create over 160 new jobs, and we anticipate that many of these will be taken by the local community."

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