The super-yacht-inspired development will have 70 bedrooms and will be up to five-star standard. It will also boast a champagne roof terrace and a Jetty restaurant, which BigHospitality understands could be headed up by Michelin-starred chef Alex Aitken.
“A hotel on this site is a perfect fit for our portfolio and is an excellent complement to the existing Marina,” said Nick Roach, chairman of Harbour Hotels. “We have a lot to do, but are fully committed to deliver a landmark hotel, spa and dining destination to Southampton.”
The ground floor of the as-yet-unnamed hotel is proposed to include a large open-plan lounge, restaurant and bar area which will extend out onto a terrace at the end of the existing promontory. The hotel will also have a number of flexible function rooms. Harbour Hotels have teamed up with MDL Developments to build the site.
The Jetty restaurant
The Jetty restaurant will be similar to its namesake at the Christchurch Harbour Hotel in Dorset, serving a locally-sourced, seafood-orientated menu featuring local oysters, shrimp and lobster, as well as numerous charcoal-grilled dishes and sharing platters.
Eamonn Feeney, managing director of MDL Developments, said: "The development is being designed to complement the adjacent Allied Development scheme and the proposed residential units coupled with a mix of bars and restaurants will create a vibrant place to live, work and enjoy time by the water.
“Ultimately we see Ocean Village, with its high-quality marina, becoming the new waterfront destination for Southampton, to rival Portsmouth’s Gunwharf Quays."
Along with the Christchurch Harbour Hotel, Harbour Hotels owns and manages the Kings hotel in Dorset; the St Ives Harbour Hotel in Cornwall; the Salcombe Harbour Hotel and the Sidmouth Harbour Hotel, both in Devon. This latest development is expected to create around 100 jobs for the area.