Developer Errol Stewart is the man behind the project that will see the Kings Wharf grain silos transformed into an 11-storey, 68-unit hotel with a bar, cafe, restaurant and conferencing rooms.

Artas Architects, the firm that redeveloped the old Launceston General Hospital into The Charles hotel and apartments, has been enlisted for the challenging project.

Director Scott Curran said the biggest challenges involved flood-proofing the hotel, as it sat on the wet side of the city's flood levees, and working within the old silo structure to bring it within current building standards.

He said maximising the silos structure as much as possible - unlike the Hobart silos project that involved substantial demolition - reduced project costs greatly, as well as retaining the building's character.

The project is predicted to cost between $11 million and $14 million.

``We have made a conscious decision to minimise elements added to the silos,'' Mr Curran said.

He said a spacious atrium would greet visitors at the hotel's entrance and give them a true sense of the silos.

From there, they would be transported to hotel reception by escalator.

The building extensions include a large promenade, decking for outdoor dining and two towers containing stairwells to ensure building compliance.

Plant equipment will be concealed in two existing towers found on the sides of the outer cylinders.

Mr Curran said the relationship between the existing flood levees, and the new one required, would evolve as the project did.

The new flood levee was proposed this year to involve a 150-metre concrete wall wrapped around the hotel's bottom floor wall, serving as both protective infrastructure and a concourse for hotel guests.