The former Habitat store in Clifton has been bought by the University of Bristol, which plans to convert the flagship building into a student hub and study centre.
Known as Beacon House, the four-storey, Grade II listed building on the corner of Queen’s Road and Queen’s Avenue next to the Royal West of England Academy, has been on the market since Habitat went into administration almost three years ago.
It has stood empty for most of that time apart from being used to house all 80 Gromit statutes from Bristol’s charity Gromit Unleashed trail last year for a five-day public exhibition called The Greatest Dog Show on Earth ahead of them being auctioned off.
Originally offered to rent, the owner – a private individual who does not wish to be identified – has now decided to sell the 2,650 sq m building. No financial details of the deal have been released.
It is the latest in a series of investments by the university in teaching and research facilities which have totalled more than £200m over the past two years.
Beacon House will become a key part of the university’s city campus due to its location between the Students’ Union on Queen’s Road and various teaching and research activities around Tyndall Avenue and Woodland Road.
It will operate as a central study and learning hub for students, providing an additional 350 study spaces with separate areas for group working. There will also be student support facilities, a café and, possibly, a bookshop or bank. Conversation work could start by the end of the year.
University deputy vice-chancellor Prof David Clarke said: “We’re very excited about the prospect of transforming Beacon House into a building which will be a central hub for our students, in one of the city’s best locations.
“This is part of our ongoing commitment to investing in new facilities for our students and academics, which is a top priority if we’re to remain one of the UK’s top universities and compete with universities overseas.”
The university was represented by the Bristol office of property agents Alder King. Lambert Smith Hampton (LSH) acted for the vendor, who wanted to ensure that Beacon House was bought by an organisation that would enhance the property.
Director of office agency at LSH’s Bristol office, Peter Musgrove, said: “This was no ordinary property deal. We received a lot of interest from a variety of occupiers – the vendor cares very much for the local community and wanted to make sure that the buyer would use Beacon House in a way that would benefit the local area. It was felt the university provided that assurance.”
Beacon House was built in the 1850s and was formerly the Queen’s Hotel before being used for retail purposes – Gardiners in the 1930s, Debenhams after the war and more recently Habitat.
