Authorities remain silent on when £70 million Buxton Crescent project will open

It has been more than a quarter of a century since Buxton Crescent closed its doors to the public in 1992.

The cost of its renovation has sky-rocketed since it was first pitched and its opening dates have consistently been missed.

Work is under way, and has been formally for four years, to reopen the Grade-I listed structure – built in the 1780s – as a 79-bed luxury hotel and spa.

Once operational, Ensana Health Spa Hotels, made up of 26 European spa hotels formerly part of the Hungarian firm Danubius Hotel Group, will run the venue.

In March, Derbyshire County Council papers revealed that the latest deadline for the largely public-funded project, was to be May.

When the Local Democracy Reporting Service approached the county council for an update on whether the scheme would hit the new deadline, it was redirected to the hotel chain.

Public relations firm the Massey Partnership is handling communications for the Buxton Crescent project on behalf of Ensana and the Buxton Crescent Hotel and Thermal Spa Company.

The hotel and spa company was set up for the project by High Peak Borough Council, Derbyshire County Council, and a group of private developers.

A spokesperson for the Massey Partnership said in March that the venue was expected to open in ‘late spring, early summer’.

It has been approached for comment twice in the past three weeks and has yet to respond to whether the scheme will open its doors in May for the first time in nearly 30 years.

Once open, the Georgian venue would have indoor and outdoor pools, using Buxton’s famed mineral water; treatment rooms making use of ‘mineral-packed mud’, sauna and steam rooms, an ice room, fitness studio, beauty salon, cafe, a restaurant with two bar areas and six retail shops.

The project struggled to get going and eventually it had been due to open in 2007 but this was gradually pushed to summer 2019.

This deadline was missed and extended until early in the new year – another deadline which has slipped.

The county council, High Peak council and the D2N2 Local Enterprise Partnership have funded £23.8 million of the project using taxpayer cash.

A further £23.8 million was contributed from the Heritage Lottery Fund – through lottery tickets sold to members of the public.

The rest of the funding has come from private property firms.

The county council said in March that restoration of the former hotel and spa has been “complex and challenging” and that “unforeseen issues” have continued to impact the construction deadline.

It says, however, that work to restore the ‘fabric’ of the building is now complete and that the venue is now being fitted out as a hotel and spa with some areas already complete.

Images posted on social media by several borough councillors in March showed the completed indoor and outdoor pool areas.

The finished project aims to provide 140 permanent jobs and boost the local economy by £4.5 million.

Derbyshire residents will get reduced rates at the hotel, restaurant and spa once they are open.