Glasgow City Council has approved a proposal from Mosaic Architecture + Design to build a new £18M Holiday Inn Pacific Quay hotel on the site of the former Glasgow Garden Festival.

The development team, which in addition to Mosaic comprises planning consultant Gary Mappin at Iceni Projects and Malcolm Pearson, director of Pacific Quay Developments, said that the planning approval will kickstart the recently launched Clyde Mission to use the Clyde to drive sustainable and inclusive growth for the city, the region and Scotland.

Led by the Scottish Government, the Clyde Mission brings together public and private sector partners to harness the opportunities and competitive advantage of the River Clyde and the surrounding assets to deliver economic, social and environmental benefits.

Situated in an unrivalled position on the south bank of the River Clyde, the 150 executive bedroom hotel will feature seven storeys with a first floor split between conferencing and co-working space and a Skybar on the top floor offering stunning views across the river to the iconic Finnieston Crane and beyond.

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The project represents an investment of more than £18M in Glasgow by developer Pacific Quay Developments. The hotel will be operated by RBH Hospitality Management and will create more than 50 permanent jobs.

Formerly part of the commercial dock operated by Clyde Port Authority, Pacific Quay was used for the Glasgow Garden Festival in 1988 before being transformed into one of Scotland's most successful new business and leisure destinations. The area is now home to the headquarters of BBC Scotland and STV and sits adjacent to the Scottish Events Campus.

Neil Haining, Director of Mosaic, said: "This development has been carefully considered in response to the site's immediate context within Pacific Quay and provides the area a much needed new business hotel of appropriate scale and high quality materials.

"The overall scale of the development has been carefully balanced with the BBC headquarters to the west and STV Glasgow to the east of the site and completes the last waterfrontage site along Pacific Quay.

"The Riverside restaurant and Rooftop terrace have been designed to take advantage of the views of the SECC, The Hydro and the Finnieston Crane. The ground floor reception and public areas connect to the new enhanced external public realm which extends along the Riverside walkway."

Malcolm Pearson added: "Although situated on one of the prime remaining waterfront sites to be developed in Glasgow, this site has lain derelict for over 15 years.

"Holiday Inn Pacific Quay will constitute an outstanding addition to Glasgow's hospitality offering to a key strategic site for Glasgow, bringing new opportunities for economic growth to the city."