PREMIER Inn Hotels Ltd has submitted an appeal against Cornwall Council’s planning committee decision to refuse its proposals for a new site in St Ives.

The appeal has been made to the planning inspectorate, following the refusal of its application for a 90-bedroom Premier Inn hotel on land at Trewidden Road. The request has been made for the appeal to be heard via a local public enquiry.

Whitbread’s planning application was presented by Cornwall Council planning officers to the members of the council’s West Cornwall sub-area planning committee on April 29 with a recommendation for planning approval.

Following a debate, the members of the committee voted to refuse the application on the grounds the proposed hotel would have an “adverse impact on the character and appearance” of the wider area including far-reaching views of the site from within St Ives town.

Louise Woodruff, property acquisitions manager at Whitbread, said: “We are hopeful that we will have the opportunity to bring Premier Inn to St Ives. We believe that a Premier Inn hotel in St Ives will increase choice for visitors, generate year-round jobs and help the popular destination to prosper all year-round. We await the next steps from the Planning Inspectorate.”