Two more hotels to become housing?

TWO more hotels have fallen victim to the downturn of the tourism industry and could soon be converted into homes.
The two brothers who own the Beau Couperon Hotel, in Rozel, who had always planned to pass it onto their children, stopped trading last year. Andy and Steve Barnes blamed Jersey’s government for not supporting tourism. Now they say that their only option is to turn the hotel into housing and have submitted a planning application for nine houses and one apartment.
The Cheval Roc, in St John, could also be redeveloped. Owner and businessman Richard Brocken may close the hotel for business next year, due to a drop in trade, if planning permission is granted for three large houses. The owners of the two hotels are the latest in a string of hoteliers who have felt forced to give in to Jersey’s increasing demand for residential developments following a downturn in tourism business.
Pictured: A model of the proposed development at Beau Couperon (from thisisjersey)

Sounds like the same is happening in Jersey as what has happened in Guernsey, the tourists are not coming to the Isands...

GD wrote:... the tourists are not coming to the Isands...

True. Why would they? Jersey's government have been unable to grasp the importance in support for the tourism industry: Sure every few years they add £10m to the tourism fund for the next 'big push' of marketing, but never really understand that you can't market what you don't have.

The industry doesn't want expensive tax-payer funded marketing, they want to be allowed to provide a product that the customer wants. If 20years ago Jersey had had the foresight to enable gambling and casinos, to offer more sensible licensing laws, and to allow development of bigger, better facilities then the industry would have provided the financial investment themselves and everybody would've been a winner. But instead they've stifled progress and left the marketeers the job of trying to find a new angle to photograph Gorey castle from.

I'm beginning to believe that the industry is reaching the point of no return, it's last hope would require the States (and planning Minister more than any other) to grow a set of balls and ignore the complaints of the 'environmentalists' and allow large developments for tourism, some of which would be on green sites.

And of course the public have to play ball too: you don't get to bemoan the death of the tourism industry in one breath and then complain that there are too many hire cars on the roads every summer.