Major consultation event for city’s ambitious Smithfield plans
THE latest phase of consultation for Birmingham’s £1.9 billion Smithfield scheme will be held next week.
The event will discuss emerging designs for phase one of the project off Upper Dean Street which is due for completion by 2027.
This will house the new home for the city’s historic Bull Ring Markets as well as offices, homes, public realm and a festival square surrounded by cafés, restaurants and bars.
This latest event follows a consultation on the wider Smithfield masterplan earlier this year.
Over the coming months, the project team will be working with partners to explore a range of subjects from green space and wellbeing to leisure, culture and events to determine what they want to see from Smithfield.
The overall project, which is focused on 42 acres of land at the former Wholesale Markets site near Bullring, could eventually have 3,000 new houses, a new landscaped park and other business space such as a hotel. It is estimated that around 8,000 jobs could be created.
Following the consultation, a planning application for phase one and the masterplan will be submitted to Birmingham City Council.
Australian construction group Lendlease is leading the development work.
Development director James Amos said: “We would like to thank everyone who responded to our masterplan consultation earlier this year. We’ve seen first hand people’s passion for the city and their desire for Smithfield to deliver a long-lasting legacy.
“Our team of international and local architects have been hard at work developing innovative proposals for the first phase of development and this next consultation provides an opportunity for people to view and comment on initial designs.”
Birmingham City Council leader Cllr Ian Ward added: “Smithfield Birmingham is a real once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to create a new community in the heart of our city and we are really excited to be working with Lendlease. This £1.9bn development means jobs, homes and opportunities for people across this city and Smithfield Birmingham will become a shining example of inclusive economic growth that will create a real legacy in the heart of Birmingham.”
The design team working on Smithfield includes Prior+Partners, David Kohn Architects, dRMM, Intervention Architecture, Haworth Tompkins, Minesh Patel Architects and RCKa.
Members of the design team will be on hand to answer questions at the event which runs from 3pm to 8pm at St Martin’s Church next to the Bullring on Tuesday, June 14. The draft plans will also be available online at www.smithfieldbirmingham.co.uk