Qazvin Grand Hotel Leased

The historical Qazvin Grand Hotel has been leased to Iran Cultural Heritage and Tourism Investment Group Company after the firm proved its financial stability.

The hotel was officially ceded to Semega (the Persian acronym of the group) during a ceremony last week, a report on the website of the Revitalization and Utilization Fund for Historical Places (aka Sabta) announced.

Semega will restore and manage the site for 25 years. It has pledged to invest 90 billion rials ($2.4 million) for the restoration of the hotel and must pay a monthly rent of 30 million rials ($800).

Restoration is not expected to take more than two years.

Known as Iran's first "European-style" hotel, the dilapidated structure was put out to tender last year but attracted little interest. However, Semega placed a bid during the second tender in February and won. Semega's reputation for restoring old buildings without financial difficulty was integral to the fund accepting their bid.

Qazvin Grand Hotel was built in 1922 during the final years of the Qajar era. It was built in the western wing of Chehelsotoun Palace by the well-known Qazvin-based Ostad (master) Ali Joulaei.

The hotel's location in the historical texture of Qazvin (152 kilometers northeast of Tehran) has been cited as one of the reasons behind the lack of interest among investors, as any possible damage to the historical texture during restoration could cost investors a small fortune.

It is one of the oldest hotels in the country, covering about 3,000 square meters. The three-story building enjoys unique architectural features, such as Corinthian order column capitals, wooden ceiling, elegant stuccos and brickwork.

Inscribed on the National Heritage List in 2004, the hotel is the site of a historically significant event: It was in this hotel that Reza Shah, the founder of the Pahlavi dynasty, plotted the coup d'etat that ended the Qajar rule in Iran in the early 20th century.