Pub operator J D Wetherspoon is to invest more than £5 million developing a new 26 bedroom hotel and refurbishing The Mile Castle pub in Newcastle.
In addition it will be creating a new beer garden (more than 3,000 square foot) on the site of a former car park to the side of the building.
The development will result in 70 new full and part-time jobs, to add to the 130 people employed at the pub, located in Westgate Road and Grainger Street.
The hotel is being built in an adjoining building, formerly the home of law firm Samuel Phillips.
It was also the former home of Dr C J Gibb, who was immortalised in The Blaydon Races.
All rooms will be en-suite, with two designed specifically for guests with disabilities.
The pub, which first opened in December 2009, will undergo a full internal refurbishment, to include decoration, new carpet, upgraded lighting, extending the bar on the third floor and creating a new cellar.
Work on the pub will begin on Monday 13 May, with the pub closed from Monday 24 June until its opening day on Tuesday 3 September.
Work on the hotel will also begin on Monday 13 May with the hotel set to open on Tuesday 12 November.
Wetherspoon founder and chairman Tim Martin said:
“ The investment highlights our commitment to the pub, its customers and staff, as well as the city of Newcastle.
“The Mile Castle is an extremely popular pub and we are confident that our customers will welcome the work being undertaken in the pub as well as the creation of our first hotel in the city.”
