Work near to starting on Blackpool's Art B&B project

LeftCoast has managed to raise £1.3m towards the Art B&B project which will take place at the Ocean Hotel on Central Promenade between Banks Street and Springfield Road.

LeftCoast Artistic Director Michael Trainor said: “We are not far off going on site and starting redevelopment. We are down to the fine details.

“Because we are publicly funded we have to do all the details and design up front before being able to start and now we have nearly everything in place.

“It is going to be a busy three months and then we should be on site and people will be able to see things change.

“We are in the process of commissioning the artists. We have about 30 different artists involved in various ways – local, regional and national.

“This could involve the design of the rooms and artwork, the running of the hotel itself even the sourcing of sustainable food.

“The whole thing is going to be from an interesting arts perspective – its not simply about a few pretty pictures on the wall.”

He said people staying there would have a choice of experiences and rooms to stay in and an area would be set aside for public workshop space.

He added: “It should look and feel like a really good hotel on the seafront but it will be a community interest company investing directly into the arts scene.”

He said cash had come from sources such as Coastal Communities Fund and Arts Council England, Community Business Fund, Tudor Trust and the Clore Duffield Prize Fund rather than from local council taxpayers.