Green light for Westin Hotel development

The State Government has welcomed the City of Perth’s decision to approve a Westin Hotel development application on the old FESA House and Perth Chest Clinic site in Hay Street, Perth. Tourism Minister Kim Hames said the development – which includes restaurants, bars, retail and public spaces – will add much-needed hotel rooms to the Perth CBD and help revitalise the eastern end of Murray and Hay streets.

“Demand for hotel rooms in Perth has traditionally been driven by the corporate market but with the city undergoing the biggest transformation in its history, its popularity as a leisure tourism destination will also increase,” Dr Hames said. “These new hotel rooms will cater for that increased demand, create new jobs and help increase the value of tourism to the State’s economy through increased visitor spend.

It is one of the first hotels to be built under State Government’s hotel incentive policy, aimed at removing critical barriers to tourism growth in the State. The Minister said the State Government had a goal for 1,900 hotel rooms to be added to the Perth CBD by 2020. 10 projects and 1,602 rooms are committed to enter the Perth CBD market between 2015 and 2018

The 362-room hotel will be developed by BGC Australia and will be operated by Starwood Hotels and Resorts under its Westin brand. Demolition work at the site is almost complete and the approval of the development application means construction can begin.

“Tourism generates around 91,000 jobs and contributed about $8.3 billion to Western Australia’s economy. The State Government has a strategy to see that figure grow to $12 billion by 2020 and new hotel development is critical in reaching that goal,” he said.

The Westin Hotel is expected to be completed by early 2017.

For Perth hotel development updates, visit: http://www.tourism.wa.gov.au