Long awaited plans for a new Travelodge in central Ipswich have been uploaded to the council's planning portal.
Essex-based developers Burney Group submitted plans for a budget hotel in Russell Road last month, with the documents now available to view on the council website.
If approved, the 100-room hotel would be built in the squared section of the former Office Outlet and Better Gym car park, next to the Suffolk County Council offices at Endeavour House.
A 72-seat cafe and bar would also be built in the five-storey building, with the mix of disabled, family and double rooms occupying the top four floors.
Existing car parking spaces would be retained, with a 60-space car park underneath the western wing of the hotel. Four of those spaces would be designated for disabled guests, while two would be fitted with electric charging ports.
Plans to subdivide the warehouse containing the former shops into five units are also expected in future.
In the plans, architects say the hotel will be ideally located for travelling football fans, being a stone's throw from Ipswich Town FC's Portman Road stadium. It would also be ideal for other visitors to the town, they said.
It is also hoped the development would act as a gateway to Ipswich town centre, helping to create an "attractive" route between the railway station and the high street.
Speculation that the national chain was eyeing up another Ipswich move first surfaced in 2019, with the site of the former Drum and Monkey pub initially believed to have been the desired location.
The chain already has a hotel in Duke Street, while planning permission was granted for a new hotel in Ranelagh Road in 2017 – which has not come to fruition.
Speaking last month, Daren Burney, chief executive of the Burney Group, said the hotel could be finished as early as August 2022 should it receive approval.
“We are excited because it will be a great project for the town,” he said.
"The site in Russell Road sits in a nice regeneration area, but it needs some tender love and care.
"It needs to be repositioned and modernised to create investment and employment opportunities for the town."
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