Designs for new homes scheme revealed
UPDATED designs for a huge new apartments and retirement scheme on the site of a former Solihull supermarket have been revealed.
Developers are planning to pull down the old Morrisons store, in Shirley town centre, and build a new multi-storey scheme in its place.
Conservative ward councillors say they are “alarmed” by the scale of the building, which they claim will overshadow nearby streets, and have launched a petition against the proposals.
But Macc Living, the company which has acquired the Stratford Road site, says it has paid close attention to local feedback and has now released new concept art reflecting a number of changes to the design.
A formal planning application for the scheme, known as Hillfield Place, is expected to be submitted to Solihull Council shortly.
However, the Change.org petition has already drawn almost 200 signatures, with residents raising concerns
over the appearance and that a large part of the complex will be used as a care home, which would be the latest of many locally.
Shirley East councillor Mark Parker, who will be opposing the project alongside fellow elected members Annette Mackenzie and Karen Grinsell,
said: “The building will be the highest at the southern end of Shirley and it will be out of kilter with other building frontages.
“It will dominate the skyline around suburban roads such as Sutherland Avenue, Solihull Road, Longmore Road, Wayfield Road and others.”
Mick Edensor, among the first residents to put his name to the campaign, said: “The local community needs better shops and homes for first-time buyers, but definitely does not need more homes for the elderly.”
Macc Living has described the scheme as “inter-generational” and insisted there had been various changes made to the initial plans, first published last October.
A spokesman for the Birminghambased firm said: “The project team has carefully and thoroughly reviewed the feedback provided during the public consultation and, as a result, amendments have been made to the designs.”