Rotherham hotels: 'We will finish it in five months' - troubleshooters step up to finish £20m Marriott

A pair of construction troubleshooters have stepped forward to finish an abandoned £20m hotel near Sheffield.

Jamie Baird and James Philips say they could complete the Marriott in Catcliffe in about five months at a cost of up to £2m.

Their firm JBP Construction has a track record of tackling difficult projects, while their construction management skills take the risk away from developers, they say.

Work on the four-star hotel stopped last year and Essex-based developer Stapleford Ventures has proved impossible to reach.

Property firm Harworth is ‘master developer’ for the area and wants the building complete “at the earliest opportunity.”

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Mr Baird, whose bio states he has experience in the commercial management of construction contracts up to £500m in value, said they would “fathom a way to finish the project” if Harworth called them in.

He added: “We will take on anything, we have very specialist knowledge of difficult sites and a trusted supply chain. We both have grey hairs, we’ve been around the block and have a wealth of knowledge.”

JBP took on and completed the 60-bed Bike and Boot hotel in Hope, Derbyshire, he said. But he warned the longer the Marriott was left, the more expensive the job would be.

He added: “I estimate it could cost up to £2m and four or five months to finish. If it’s not progressed soon it will end up being robbed of anything of value and then wrecked, making a complete eyesore. 

“It’s a very public gateway to the area, thousands see it from the Parkway every day and it will have a detrimental impact on housing developments at Waverley.”

The half-finished hotel stands on land off Highfield Spring and Poplar Way where the Waverley housing development meets the Morrisons roundabout at Catcliffe.

Harworth, the former property division of British Coal, was approached for comment.

In January it said it had had regular dialogue with Stapleford and would “continue to keep the community of Waverley updated on progress.”