A multi-million pound 100-room hotel with a rooftop bar and restaurant is to be built in Rochester.

An application for the Corporation Street site was given the green light last night by members of Medway Council's planning committee.

A total of nine councillors voted in favour of the plans, which are expected to cost around £6.5 million, while five voted against them.

They voted to demolish the existing car wash and build a five-storey hotel, despite claims it would "harm the heritage of Rochester" and would be an "eye-sore" for visitors.

The main talking points of the night revolved around the view of the cathedral from the railway station on the opposite side of the street, how it would be affected and whether this development was the right one to replace the unused petrol station.

Rochester West ward councillor Alex Paterson (Lab) said the proposal was "the wrong building, in the wrong place" and urged others to reject it.

"This is it, our last chance to hold the line over over-development, reflecting some of the most unimaginative and dismal architecture thrown up on the north side of Corporation Street," he said at the meeting.

"Our last chance to preserve the unique character of historic Rochester in the face of an unsympathetic, out-of-scale and out-of-place development, which it demonstrably is indeed; our last chance to reject a building with the charm of an out-of-town business district."

Cllr Adrian Gulvin (Con) supported the plans, saying the "eclectic mix of architecture" in the town was one of the main joys of Rochester.

He said: "You can't find one building of architectural merit which has been built since the start of the Second World War.

"You can walk a short distance and see 1,000 years of history, or if you looked closer, maybe 2,000 years and we've not contributed anything in my lifetime to Rochester."

The hotel design was criticised by other members of the committee, including Cllr Nick Bowler (Lab) who called it "ugly", while Cllr Simon Curry (Lab) described it as looking like "some sort of university accommodation or business park".

Discussion for the hotel began more than three years ago and in that time three architects have been brought in to work on them.

The site will have 100 rooms spread over five floors, as well as having a café and bar on the ground floor.

No additional parking will be included, however, one of the conditions for the approval asked the developers for a £50,000 contribution towards parking improvements in the town.

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