You can’t miss them. Eight major buildings across Bristol which were once busy with activity - but today are empty, many subject to long-running planning or legal disputes.
From the Grosvenor Hotel, struck by fire in October, to the former Debenhams department store which closed in October 2021, these big sites require heavy spending to bring them back into use.
But for the good of the city, it’ll be beneficial these sites soon get the love and attention (or the demolition) they require.
1. Grosvenor Hotel, Redcliff
The once-proud Grosvenor Hotel, opened in 1875, stands in a sorry state after years of being empty and then a huge fire in October last year. Plans were approved to bring down the site earlier this month - now it’s only a matter of when, not if. | Mark Taylor
2. Grosvenor Hotel in 1916
The hotel was popular for people using Temple Meads station. In the late 1980s it became a bed and breakfast for the homeless before, in 1993, closing its doors on safety grounds. | Know Your Place
3. Former Debenhams store, city centre
The huge six-storey department store closed in October 2021. It has since been purchased by AEW which is in talks with the city council over future plans for the huge site. Rumours are it’ll be turned into homes with some retail on the ground floor. | Bristol World
4. Jones and Co, later Debenhams - 1968
This was taken three years before Debenhams would take over the store. | Bristol Archives