Travelodge in St Albans

London Pension Fund Authority, managed by Knight Frank Investment Management (KFIM), recently forward-funded a mixed-use development in St Albans, Hertfordshire, which includes a Travelodge hotel and restaurant scheme. Developer Reef Estates received a total of £24.425 million from KFIM for the completed asset, with practical completion expected in Q3 2020.

Prime Mechanical was responsible for the ventilation design and installation at the Travelodge hotel in St Albans. The scheme incorporates 130 bedrooms, a ground-floor retail space, and a pub restaurant leased to Youngs & Co Brewery. The majority of the ground-floor retail space is leased for 20 years, while Travelodge has signed a new 35-year lease.

According to Richard Lines, the partner and head of Gerald Eve’s alternatives capital markets team, St Albans has an under-supply of hotel rooms, particularly at the price point offered by Travelodge, and this development will go a long way to meeting the demand.

The development is an excellent example of finding alternative uses for struggling high street properties. The vacant BHS store will make way for the new development, injecting life into the surrounding area of St Peters Street.

John Styles, partner and Fund Manager for LPFA, stated that the investment provides an attractive, long, and secure income stream to balance more active management risks in other parts of the LPFA portfolio. The investment also completes the £300m allocation made in June 2016.