River Rea to see light of day as Irish Quarter transformed Major residential development to unearth waterway under oldest part of city
NEW plans have been revealed to transform Birmingham’s traditional Irish Quarter with one of the largest residential developments in the city.
The long-awaited development of the Digbeth site – called Connaught Square – will see Birmingham’s River Rea revealed for all to see again after it has been hidden away in culverts for decades.
Previous plans to develop the site, approved almost a decade ago, were dropped when the developer went bust in the midst of the economic downturn.
But the impending arrival of the Midland Metro tram through Digbeth, High Speed Rail and the proposed redevelopment of the nearby Smithfield site nearby has prompted developer Seven Capital to come forward with these proposals.
The application is for 940 apartments, 65,000 sq foot of commercial space and public open plazas.
A signature 18-storey tower on the northern corner will lead into the site, while the historic White Swan pub will be preserved at the opposite corner of the development.
Seven Capital managing director Phil Carlin said: “Not only will this scheme play an important role in the regeneration of Digbeth alongside Smithfield, it will bring a muchneeded boost to tackle the Birmingham housing crisis along with hundreds of shortterm construction jobs and longer-term employment in the commercial element of the scheme. There is significant public realm which along with the River Rea becomes the focal point for a cluster of new commercial and retailing units.
“We are in early stage discussions with retail partners to ensure the commercial aspect of the scheme is complementary to Connaught Square and the wider Digbeth environment. We have some specific initiatives here and we believe Birmingham will be proud of the product that emerges here.”
Mr Carlin said investors had been encouraged by the wider development around Birmingham city centre.
“We have superb confidence around the appetite from end users which is in no small part linked to the prospect of the Digbeth tram stop being located immediately outside the front door of our first building,” he said. “Anyone working at HSBC could in theory travel door-to-door via the new tram so the confidence to invest capital in schemes of this size is in no small way linked to the infrastructure investment made by the council.”
Architect Bob Ghosh, of firm K4, said the revival of the River Rea was a feature of the older plan which had been kept.
“It is largely covered through Digbeth. We have brought it out, we celebrate it,” he said.
“The river is the centrepiece of the public realm – it follows the line and sets the shape of the development.
“One of the problems with Digbeth is it is lacking meaningful public spaces and we are addressing that with our scheme.
“There are big differences with the old plan too. One of the reasons it was never built was the three levels of basement car parking. Putting that next to a river was always going to be expensive to deliver.”
Mr Ghosh said the public transport
One of the problems with Digbeth is it is lacking meaningful public spaces and we are addressing that with our scheme. Architect Bob Ghosh
improvements meant there was less reliance on car parking now. “A key part of our thinking was to maximise pedestrian movement through the site and encourage cycling and use of public transport,” he added. The council had also been clear that tiny studio apartments favoured by developers a few years ago were no longer desirable. “Our 940 apartments are across the range from starter one-bedroom flats to larger family or flat share apartments. The planning department was keen that these are not cramped studio apartments for a transient population,” said Mr Ghosh. “They want apartments designed so that people will stay and live in long term.” He added that a positive for new tenant will be the shared rooftop gardens and terraces – ‘an oasis’ at the heart of Digbeth. Mr Ghosh said they have consulted with both the Irish Centre and the Digbeth Residents Association over the plans and taken some points on board with the submitted plans.