Hotel Balmoral to be demolished

Work begins in Novermber to demolish the Hotel Balmoral, which has been closed since before maBoum arrived in Monte Carlo. In its place, a new 7 storey luxury residence will be built, scheduled for completion in 2010. The news was announced at the extraordinary general meeting of Monte Carlo SBM last Friday, along with two other projects: one to add a conference space to the Hotel Hermitage, the other to re-develop the Sporting d'Hiver, which many locals think is an eyesore. There's no decision yet on whether it'll be demolished. Several plans are to be submitted to SBM by the end of this year, and building work is likely to start in 2012.