A DESIGN house is ending the year on a high note after securing new contracts on two major city centre hotel schemes.

Jesmond-based Dakota House of Design has been appointed by developer Trafalgar Leisure to transform the Blundell Building on Newcastle’s Clayton Street, converting it from a disused department store which has stood empty for the past 25 years, into a 70-bedroom hotel.

It has also been appointed to work on a site in Manchester for an undisclosed operator.

The announcements complete a year which has included projects for Hilton Hotels and the transformation of Europe’s most expensive town house – No 1 Cornwall Terrace, a Grade 1-listed private residence in London – which has now gone on the market for a £100m.

The firm has also been appointed to develop a concept for a number of Best Western Hotel operators, working on behalf of Yew Lodge Business Solutions. The company has also been appointed to provide planning and project management services on a number of schemes.

Managing director Peter Hodgson said: “This is a great way to end the year. We have developed an enviable reputation for our ability to work for a diverse range of clients from leading multi-site operators to single venue owners, as well as private individuals in the residential sector with open ended budgets.

“We are really fortunate to end the year on such a high, and are excited about the opportunities and challenges that lie-ahead of us in 2013.”