A LANDMARK hotel destroyed by a massive inferno will be sold off in an auction, according to one of its owners.

Russell Claydon

A LANDMARK hotel destroyed by a massive inferno will be sold off in an auction, according to one of its owners.

The derelict Tarantella Hotel has become an eyesore in Sudbury since it was devastated by fire in January 2008.

Agnello Gargiulo, who is a joint owner of the building with his brother Dominic, has said they will be looking to relinquish the property to a new developer once the time is right.

He returned to Sudbury recently to speak to police about the latest fire at the site which swept through the renovated wing on August 16 - the only part not left in ruins from the huge blaze 18 months ago.

A disagreement with his brother, now living in Spain, means nothing will be sorted immediately, but he hopes it will go under the hammer in the not too distant future.

“Eventually the place will be sold at an auction,” he said. “We can sit on it for a year or two with the market as it is.

“Originally I was trying to raise finances to rebuild it but I cannot because of the issue with my brother who is a 50/50 partner.”

The father-of-two, now working at a hotel in Cambridge, said the last 18 months since the fire has been a nightmare for him with bouts of depression and having his house in the town repossessed.

Assessing the latest damage at the Melford Road site, he said: “I try not to come here now because it is so emotional for me. I feel so much anger.

“This building is a landmark really, it is 120 years old.”

He added: “I came to this country when I was 21 (from Italy) and we spent a lot of money extending this restaurant and nursery. Every penny we made we reinvested and I wish I had taken it abroad now.”

Since the fire, the 12-bedroom hotel, which was valued at �1.1million, has been frequented by people who sleep in its rooms without permission and use the concealed spaces to take drugs and drink alcohol.

The EADT was shown psychotic messages sprawled across bedroom walls inside the building and bottles of half drunk wine as well as fresh flowers on a bed.

Sergeant Matt Carney, of Sudbury police, said there had been numerous problems relating to the derelict hotel.

“We have had 14 calls since May to people being in the premises. There needs to be some sort of action taken to prevent them getting in there in the first place.”

But Mr Gargiulo, 51, insisted he cannot afford to board it up as the police have requested.

Babergh District Council has put up fencing around the old hall area as it has been declared structurally unsafe.

And after an engineer carried out a further inspection following the most recent fire it has been decided the fencing will now be extended to cover the perimeter of the building.

The brothers acquired what was formerly Sudbury Hall after their father bought it and sent them over from Italy to run it as the Tarantella Hotel.