News and Information about Birmingham
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| Outline Planning Permission for Tower Blocks on Broad Street and Granville Street |
| The Planning Committee has granted outline permission for a 20-storey tower behind the Lee Longlands furniture store on Broad Street and a 10-storey tower on nearby Granville Street; both for use as either offices, hotel or student accommodation (News Headlines 29/05/11). |
| Broad Street Tower |
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The Broad Street Tower
(map) is an unbuilt skyscraper which has been approved for
construction at 212-223 Broad Street, Westside. The new 41-floor, 132-metre building will contain 350 apartments and a 150-room hotel. |
| Regal Tower |
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Regal Tower
(map) is an unbuilt skyscraper that has been approved for
construction at the junction of Sheepcote Street and Broad
Street, Westside. The new 200-metre building will contain 256 apartments and lower-level retail units. It will be the tallest skyscraper in Birmingham. |
| V Building |
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The V Building (map)
is an unbuilt skyscraper with a V-shaped footprint that has been
approved for construction as part of the 7.6-acre Arena Central
development off Suffolk Street Queensway, Westside. The new 152-metre building will contain 600 apartments and lower-level retail units. The developers requested that planning permission be extended by 10 years in November 2009 (News Archive 9/11/09). |
| City of Birmingham Library |
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A new library
(map) is currently under construction on Centenary Square,
Westside. It will be a 10-storey glass-fronted building clad in circular iron hoops; completion is anticipated in 2013. Critics believe it will be an eyesore and will clash with the neighbouring neo-classical Baskerville House and Hall of Memory (News Archive 27/11/09). Questions were raised about the cost of the new library in December 2009. Apparently the city council have budgeted £193 million but this does not include interest on the capital loans of £135 million that were raised to finance the project. Annual interest of £7.5 million charged over 40 years will increase the overall cost by £300 million (News Archive 17/12/09). It was announced in October 2010 that the library will be run as a charitable trust so that it can claim various reliefs to reduce maintenance costs (News Archive 05/10/10). In November 2010, the architect Francine Houben claimed that the library would transform Centenary Square into a social hub because, amongst other things, it will be connected to the neighbouring Birmingham Rep at ground floor and mezzanine levels and the two buildings will share a foyer, 300-seat theatre, restaurants, bars and an external amphitheatre (News Archive 13/11/10). Plans for the amphitheatre, which will be a stepped-sunken-outdoor performance space, were unveiled in February 2011 (News Archive 26.02.11). Builders fitted a metal filigree of rings to the glazed facade of the library in August 2011. The rings are supposed to symbolise Birmingham's industrial past, particularly its canals, tunnels and viaducts; however, critics regard them as a pretentious eyesore (News Headlines 16/08/11). |
| Birmingham Aquatics and Leisure Centre |
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Developers have obtained planning permission for the Birmingham
Aquatics and Leisure Centre
(map) which will be built next to Nelson Primary School on
King Edwards Road. The new building will contain a 50-metre
Olympic pool
(News Archive 19/12/09). The plans were modified in order to save money in September 2010. The Olympic pool, sports hall and outdoor pitches will still be built, but the diving pool and fun pool have been omitted. These and other modifications should reduce the budget from £58 million to £20 million (News Archive 02/09/10). |
| Conservatoire/Adrian Boult Hall |
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The Birmingham Conservatoire might be rebuilt on Broad Street
next to the former Municipal Bank which could be refurbished as
a concert hall.
The current site of the Conservatoire and Adrian Boult Hall will be demolished in 2013 when Paradise Circus is redeveloped. Both buildings were due to relocate to Eastside but a new high speed railway has taken priority and so a new site is required (News 06/08/10). |
| Map: Westside Birmingham |
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