A MAJOR hotel is to be demolished to make way for 80 new homes.

Despite opposition from community groups, residents and visitors to the town, councillors approved plans to knock down the County Hotel, in Preston New Road.

But Blackburn with Darwen Council's executive member for regeneration, Coun Ashley Whalley, today revealed negotiations were taking place to bring another top-notch hotelier to the town on top of the one planned at the forthcoming M65 service station at Ewood.

The 5.9-acre site currently occupied by the County, one of the first sites visitors coming in along Preston New Road see when they enter the town, will be used by national homebuilder Fairclough Homes Ltd. to build 30 flats and 50 detached, semi-detached and terrace homes.

Eden Park resident Catherine May told the planning and highways committee: "There seems to be no structure to the development of Beardwood. It just seems to be one housing estate after another. This area has no heart, no focal point. The County, in a small way, provided that, because at least we all met up at Christmas and new year. The nearest shop is a mile away -- a car journey. Our children have nowhere to play and they can only hang around on the street."

Coun Alan Jones told the committee he didn't feel the houses proposed for the site would be in keeping with the area's existing homes -- which tend to be large, expensive detached homes. A letter submitted on behalf of Blackburn Lions read: "We wish to oppose any plans to redevelop the County site for residential purposes. Blackburn is currently very poorly served with hotels of a reasonable standard where large, prestigious functions can be held. If we truly aspire to city status, we need more, not less such hotels.

"Blackburn Lions supports the County Hotel with many functions, and it is difficult to envisage where these might be held if they had to be relocated."

A letter from a couple of ex-Blackburnians now living in Cambridge was also received.

It read: "In our opinion, Blackburn is not very well served with good hotels of the County's size and, given the aspirations of the town, we believe it needs a good hotel close to the town centre."

Officers told the meeting a bond of £64,000 would be placed down by Fairclough to pay for new facilities in the community before work began on the site.

Coun Whalley said: "Obviously, we did not want to lose a hotel such as the County. But at the end of the day we cannot force them to remain open."