Wisbech’s Phoenix Hotel which was destroyed by fire in 2010 unlikely to be repaired for forseeable future

The Phoenix Hotel (Image: Archant)

Flames tore through the Phoenix Hotel on the North Brink, in Wisbech, in April 2010. Firefighters battled through the night to bring the blaze under control.

The following day, it became clear much of the Georgian building, a stone’s throw from Peckover House, would have to be demolished because it was at risk of collapsing.

Just the facade of the 16-bed hotel was left standing, supported by scaffolding for the next six months until internal steelwork was put in place.

Fenland District Council, which had already spent £100,000 on making the building safe, said efforts to trace its owner had been unsuccessful.

On Wednesday, a spokesman said work on the building was unlikely to happen in the forseeable future.

“Since the fire that destroyed the Phoenix in April 2010, the council has used its statutory powers to make the building safe and protect the site,” he added.

“We have also made extensive efforts to trace the owner, including working closely with the police and engaging a specialist trace agent.

“To date, those efforts have proved unsuccessful. However, we are continuing to explore every avenue open to us to try to find the best way forward in a very complex situation. The building remains the owner’s responsibility.

“We are in dialogue with the mortgagee, the Bank of East Asia, and we are also examining the possibilities of securing some external funding to assist with the costs of regeneration.”

In June, it emerged the council had spent more than £200,000 making a number of buildings which had been damaged by fire safe.

While the Phoenix was empty at the time of the fire, on the night of April 29, 25 people were evacuated from the neighbouring Hare and Hounds Hotel, and paintings were removed from Peckover House as a precaution.

The fire was started deliberately. The blaze was one of a number of suspicious fires, including Constantine House, on the town’s Nene Quay, and two other fires in North Brink, which happened around the same time.