New apartments, offices and a thriving hub of independent traders, retailers and cafés are all set to be built at a major new mixed-use scheme in Birmingham city centre.
And the developer behind the project at the old Axis Square site said it hoped the scheme would address the "chronic undersupply" of housing in central Birmingham for the next generation of workers attracted to the city's burgeoning business community.
Cheshire-based Vita Group is leading the scheme at the now vacant land, in Holliday Street, after announcing it had completed a deal to buy the four-acre plot next to the Mailbox complex last month.
Firm details regarding the specifics of what could be built - including height, the number of apartments and volume of commercial space - are not yet available but a formal public consultation on the plans is due to be held later in the summer.
The new proposals have been branded 'Goods Station' as a nod to the land's historic use as a railway depot in the 1920s, something which the developer says it plans to celebrate as part of its proposals.
David Ancell, Vita Group's chief brand officer spoke to BusinessLive as the company launches a new website today, outlining publicly for the first time what the future could hold for the historic site.
"We believe there's a real opportunity to bring a neighbourhood that celebrates independent trade," he said.
"We've looked at other masterplans that contain glitzy retailers and chains but we really want to create a destination that has units designed around independent and artisan traders and start-ups.
"We believe this will allow us to house a lot more variety in that neighbourhood because we can have smaller units that are accessible to those traders and bring something different to the city.
"For eating and drinking, again we will follow the theme of trying to bring more independent businesses together. We're looking at different combinations of things such as food halls and independent breweries. There will also be a focus on health and wellbeing with outside space for a workout and to eat lunch."
Vita's head of planning James Rooke said the development would be residential-led which the team hoped would address an undersupply of housing.
"Our research has identified that there is a chronic undersupply of residential accommodation within the city centre," he told BusinessLive.
"The demographic of people who will be attracted to the new jobs created in Birmingham, with these large occupiers taking office space, are people who will want a good work-life balance and want to live, work and socialise in the city centre.
"If you look at central Birmingham's residential density, it is way behind other regional cities and miles behind when compared with Europe."
The development site previously belonged to London and Continental Railways, a company wholly owned by the Department for Transport.
For several years, it was tabled for a new office development called Axis Square but this was eventually abandoned despite securing consent for two new buildings. The old Axis building which had stood there since the 1970s was demolished last year.
The predicted timescale for Goods Station should see the first planning application submitted at the end of this year, with consent secured next spring subject to backing by city councillors.
Construction work on the first building to be delivered is then expected to take up to three years to complete.
Vita Group's portfolio of business sectors includes development and architecture, finance, PR and tech while its student accommodation arm already has a presence in Birmingham at the old BBC Pebble Mill.
Mr Ancell said Vita Group was committed to regenerating the land following what many in the city have perceived as a series of false dawns and general inaction following the protracted plans first outlined in 2016 by the previous owner.
"We are really focussed on investing long term in the neighbourhoods we create because we also operate them long term - we are not a developer-trader," he said.
"We are absolutely committed to getting this development under way as quickly as possible."
Mr Rooke concluded: "This is the first residential product that Vita Group will be doing in Birmingham as a buy-and-hold model. As an operator, we don't take a three-year vision of a city, we take a 35-year one.
"Ultimately, we want to create a sustainable, urban neighbourhood which is linked to the history of the site and we're really confident we can bring forward something that ourselves and the wider Birmingham public will be really proud of."
