Work gets under way on £20m canalside project
INFRASTRUCTURE and remediation work has started on a £20 million industrial project in Tyseley.
The Kingpin development will see a series of industrial and warehouse units constructed on a 13-acre canalside site which will comprise more than 200,000 sq ft of units.
The regeneration is being delivered by H2O Urban, a joint venture company owned equally by the charity Canal & River Trust and London-based developer Bloc.
Tyseley is one of several regeneration projects that H2O is working on in conjunction with Canal & River Trust adjacent to its waterways and funding for this site has been provided by Ropemaker, the property arm of the BP Pension fund.
Main contractor on the project is Halesowen firm A&H Construction and the first unit is due to be ready during the summer with overall completion expected next spring.
A pre-let deal has already been agreed with SIG Trading which has signed a 15-year lease for a 15,000 sq ft unit, trade counter and builders’ yard at the site off Wharfdale Road.
Richard Thomas, director of Bloc and managing the scheme for H2O Urban, said: “After securing funding in 2016, we are delighted that this project is now on site. There is a severe shortage of grade A industrial accommodation in Birmingham and throughout the Midlands so we know that Kingpin will prove to be an extremely attractive option.
“We hope that the location will be used by a variety of firms, including local companies looking to set up or expand their business.”
James Lazarus, head of property development at the Canal & River Trust, added: “We’re excited to see this innovative scheme create a better waterside frontage to the Grand Union Canal through the work of H2O Urban.
“H2O and Canal & River Trust strive to set an example to other developers of waterside sites by establishing best practice on the sites it owns.
“It is important that we are able to regenerate land into something that adds value to an area and the canalside realm.”