Plans for a new £360 million mixed-use 'green' development in Birmingham have been given the go ahead today.
The Curzon Wharf project, first unveiled two years ago, will see a city centre site transformed with new residential, commercial and life sciences accommodation.
Birmingham-basd Woodbourne Group is leading the project on canalside land next to Dartmouth Circus island and the A38 Aston Expressway, with the company aiming to make it a net-zero carbon project.
The scheme will be led by a 53-storey, build-to-rent apartment tower, providing a landmark entry point to the city for those travelling from the M6 motorway and north and which, at 564 feet, would be the city's tallest. It will have 498 units and an as yet unnamed operator has also been signed up to run the building.
Other planned accommodation includes a 41-storey student accommodation tower with 732 bedrooms, 14-storey 122-unit residential block and nearly 130,000 sq ft of office, R&D and life sciences space.
There are also plans for more than 3,000 sq ft of retail units, 15,000 sq ft of leisure space and 76,400 sq ft of public realm alongside walking and cycling routes.
The application site is currently occupied by industrial units constructed in the 1960s which would be demolished.
Woodbourne Group estimates the estate could generate more than 1,000 new jobs and boost Birmingham's economy by at least £151 million. The project was approved at a meeting of Birmingham City Council's planning committee earlier today.
Tani Dulay, chief executive of Woodbourne Group, said: "We've worked hard to reach this point and it is incredibly satisfying to stand on the brink of delivering such a world-class development for a city I'm proud to call home.
"I would like to thank the planning committee, our team and everyone else that has supported this scheme. We need to help power the economic recovery by facilitating investment, creating jobs and acting as a catalyst to further success."
Neil Rami, chief executive of West Midlands Growth Company, added: "Curzon Wharf has the potential to catalyse growth and innovation in the West Midlands, not only creating jobs in its own right, but helping to drive regional investment as a flagship development that is a very visible beacon of the region's commitment to creating world-class, sustainable infrastructure."
