PLANS have been submitted to build a £10m Premier Inn at Winchester with 101 bedrooms.

If approved, the hotel would be built next to the city’s fire station, and could create 55 jobs.

Business chiefs have welcomed the move, but concerns have been raised about traffic and parking.

Cllr Chris Pines, who represents the area, also said most of the jobs would be unskilled, and possibly seasonal.

“My message to the developers would be to go away and think again,” he said.

The proposed site stands at the corner of Winnall Manor Road and Easton Lane.

Cllr Pines said traffic at the junction was heavy, and parking in the area was in short supply.

He added that staff at many nearby employers, such as the Royal Mail sorting office, already had to park on the Winnall estate and walk the rest of the way.

Stewart Deering, director of Reef Estates, which has made the application on Premier Inn’s behalf, said they would provide 87 spaces at the hotel.

He added that it should not add to queues entering Winchester in the morning, or leaving in the evening, as their guests would be going the other way.

He said: “The proposal provides an excellent opportunity for long term economic stimulus that will initially create approximately 55 new jobs.

“Short term economic benefits include nearly £10m invested by Reef and Premier Inn at the site itself to develop the hotel.”

The site is valued at £1.5m and is on the market with Charters Commercial estate agents in Jewry Street, Winchester.

Director, Joe Harvey, said it had now been sold, pending planning approval.

“It is quite rare that a site of this size comes up in Winchester,” he added.

The plot is currently occupied by Caledonia House, a warehouse built around 20 years ago with car parking.

The current owner is furniture company, Finishing Touches International. The Chronicle tried to contact the firm but was unable to obtain a comment before going to press.

Winchester Business Improvement District, which acts on behalf of around 800 companies in the city centre, has welcomed the new hotel plan.

Its marketing manager, Amy McCartan, said: “We welcome any new accommodation providers into the city as there is a real demand for space with the increase of tourism over the past few years.

“We would hope that the hotel complements other accommodation providers in and around the city. I look forward to hearing future plans for this project.”

With 101 rooms, the new hotel would be one of the largest in the Winchester district.

It comes after Holiday Inn opened the first of its ‘new generation’ hotels on the city’s outskirts at Morn Hill two years ago. It has 141 rooms, while Norton Park Hotel at Sutton Scotney boasts 175.

The power to approve the Premier Inn scheme rests with Winchester City Council.

It is expected to make a decision within the next few weeks.