IT will be the highest building in Southampton - rising 83m into the sky to the tip of its white spire.

The 21-storey shimmering hotel, dubbed a "gateway to the city", is set to become its latest landmark.

It is the centrepiece of a prestigious £110m development that has been given the go ahead by the city council.

Businesses will be able to enjoy conferencing facilities for 500 people on the second and top floor with views of the Itchen Valley and across the city.

International hotel giant Radisson SAS will run the four star 204-bed hotel, which will be built off St Andrews Road on the site of an ambulance station and some 1960s office buildings.

It will dwarf the nearby 13-storey Jury's Inn at Charlotte Place.

The hotel will be flanked by a lower 11-storey 122-unit "apart-hotel" where guests can stay for months with their own kitchen facilities.

It will built next to a 14-storey block of 219 flats, inducing 23 studio flats, 168 one-beds and 28-two beds. About one quarter will be available for rent or shared ownership with a housing association in talks with the developer, Imperial Property (Southampton) Ltd.

The three buildings will front East Park Terrace and Andrews Park, while an office block will be built at the end of St Andrews Road.

The 12-storey building will have 8,996 square metres of floor space and could become a corporate headquarters for a global firm.

A plaza with "public art" will form the hub of the scheme, linking to Solent University.

City planning officer Kay Brown said the original hotel proposal had been "significantly improved" to make it more exciting.

More glass was added, the tower was raised in height and a spire was added while its design was changed to make it appear slimmer.

Planning consultant Graham Parker of CSJ Planning told a planning meeting of city councillors, who unanimously backed the scheme: "It will be a superb addition to the city. It will be an elegant group of buildings and a gateway to the city centre."

"I believe it's a proposal that you and I will be proud of."

Solent University, The City of Southampton Society and the Chamber of Commerce expressed concerns about the size of the buildings. The society also wanted some affordable homes.

Mr Parker dismissed fears over minimal parking - there are fewer than 30 spaces with each building - saying: "If you want to live in the city centre and want to have a car you won't be buying a flat in this development."

The scheme will be completed in 2010. About £660,000 will be given to the city council to smarten up the eastern edge of Andrews Park.