TOURISM in Chester could be given a boost with the announcement a 61- apartment hotel is planned for the city.

Aparthotel chain, Roomzzz, has revealed its intention to convert Norroy House, on Nuns Road – formerly home of Chester’s DVLA and HMRC offices – into luxury accommodation and create about 20 new jobs in the process.

The 1960s building, which overlooks Chester Racecourse, was up for sale with empty office spaces for a considerable time.

But its acquisition will see it transformed, ready for its scheduled opening during the summer of 2014 subject to planning approval.

Mark Walton, head of Roomzzz Aparthotel, said: “We are confident that the appeal and the tried and tested model of Roomzzz will be of huge benefit to both tourism and the economy of Chester.

“The Aparthotel model is not the same as a hotel. Roomzzz guests are typically professionals and international guests looking for a longer term stay than a hotel can reasonably offer.

“A high percentage of Roomzzz guests are American and Japanese spending considerable amounts of time within one area. Research is showing a high proportion of international guests already looking to book via the Roomzzz brand for stays in 2014.”

Consultation over the proposals concluded on Friday, with a final planning application to be determined by Cheshire West and Chester Council planning officers on Friday, January 17.

Mr Walton said his company would be carrying out the conversion ‘sympathetically’, adding they would be working alongside English Heritage and council planners throughout.

“We have taken every precaution to ensure the conversion of an existing building is both sympathetic to the surrounding area and will compliment existing buildings and structures,” added Mr Walton. “We are extremely pro-active as a brand to reassure our host cities that our developments are in tune with daily life and in keeping with the location.”

Both full-time and part-time jobs will be created as a result, with the company pledging to use local firms to carry out the construction work.

Mr Walton added: “We work closely with our customers finding out from a business perspective what they need, where they would like to see Roomzzz and how we can help. We have had an impressive response to Chester with an overwhelming positive response from new and existing customers of looking to ‘city hop’ and to include Chester in their remit.”

There have been some objections to the proposals from residents living in the vicinity, with some of the concerns raised surrounding the lack of parking, increased volumes of traffic at the junction of Nuns Road and Lower Watergate Street, and the supposed popularity of the accommodation with hen and stag parties.