Oscar-winning actor Robert De Niro’s plans to open an 83-bedroom boutique in London’s Covent Garden have been scrapped.
Westminster City Council granted planning permission for the development in 2016. Work was due to start last year with an expected completion date in 2019.
The venue would have been a joint venture between De Niro, Capital & Counties (Capco) and BD Hotels. The star already operates the Greenwich hotel in New York with partners Ira Drukier and Richard Born of BD Hotels.
A spokesperson for Capco said: “We have not reached satisfactory commercial terms with BD Hotels. The Wellington is a unique investment opportunity and we are reviewing our plans, which include proposals for office and retail space.”
The hotel would have been developed behind the historic façade of six adjacent buildings (three of which are Grade II-listed) bounded by Wellington, Tavistock, Burleigh and Exeter streets, one of which formerly housed iconic Theatreland restaurant Joe Allen, which was forced to relocate last year due to the project.
The new hotel was set to include two restaurants, a spa and a private members’ club, described as “a homely yet arty brick-built hub for moneyed hipsters looking to stay in a grand but relaxed New York home”.
BD Hotels, run by Drukier and Born, is one of the biggest names in the New York boutique hotel sector, where its portfolio includes the Bowery and the Ludlow.
