Hilton Hotel building might be converted into retail shops, student hostels

The Hilton Hotel which has been out of business over the last couple of months could be converted to open up for retail shops and the students’ hostels business.

These are two of the options that the owners of the Hilton Hotel building are considering. According to a statement that was released by the building’s owners, the building is being evaluated for repurposing into a retail hub in line with the changing market demands

“The key investment characteristics that highlight the capital value of the property and the asset management opportunity presented by the former Hilton Hotel are the opportunity to configure the retail space to provide more floor area for additional retailers,” the statement said.

The owners of Hilton include the government of Kenya which has a 40.57 per cent shareholding in International Hotels Kenya Limited, which owns the Hilton.

The iconic Hilton Hotel ended its operations in Kenya after more than half a century in December 2022.

The government also held a 33.83 per cent stake in Kenya Hotel Properties Limited, the operator of the InterContinental Hotel, which also shut down in August 2020.

According to a related report that appeared in a local business newspaper, the current the retail section of the Hilton building “measures 28,458 square feet and has an 82 per cent occupancy rate with tenants such as Co-operative Bank of Kenya, Bata Shoe Company, Lintons Place Limited, City Walk Limited, G4S Limited, Healthy U, Baus Optical and Goodlife Pharmacy.”

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According to the shareholders’ statement, the building which is located on Mama Ngina street, in the middle of the central business district, generates Sh. 91,980,914 per year.

The Hilton Hotel building comprises of 333,839 square feet of built-up area and 40 basement parking spaces. It has retail shops on the ground floor and mezzanine level, meeting and banquet facilities, and a 20-storey hotel tower that comprises of 287 rooms.

The hotel was built in 1969 , six years after independence, and at the time became Nairobi’s tallest building with a height to ceiling of 61 meters.