Plans lodged for 1,300 homes at Martineau Place

A planning application has been submitted to replace the Martineau Place shopping centre in Birmingham city centre with around 1,300 homes, offices, shops and public spaces.

The owners, Sixth Street and Henley Investment Management, have lodged the plans with Birmingham City Council for the 2.7-acre site between Corporation Street and Bull Street. As well as the homes, the scheme would include 280,000 sq ft of offices and shops, and could feature a 60-storey residential tower.

Fewer homes than first proposed

The total of around 1,300 homes is down from up to 1,500 when the proposals were first unveiled in June, when a public consultation was launched. The investors bought the 300,000 sq ft shopping centre in 2021.

They say the designs draw on the area's historic character, and that more than half the site would become public space, with gardens, squares and planting, along with improvements to Union Street to make it greener and more welcoming. A spokesperson described the scheme as a "vital catalyst for regional transformation".

The project team includes the architect EPR, the planning consultancy Newmark, the project managers Opera and the consultation specialists Marca Strategy.

The Central Heart

Martineau Place is a central part of the city council's "Birmingham Central Heart" regeneration plan, which was shown to investors at the property conference in Cannes earlier this year. It sits directly opposite another key site, the former Rackham's department store.

The Central Heart vision covers the area between Cathedral Square and the new HS2 station at Curzon Street, and the council says it could eventually accommodate up to 5,000 homes and 8,000 jobs.

A changing city centre

The centre of gravity of city centre shopping has shifted in recent years towards the Bullring and Grand Central, and the area around Bull Street and the old Rackham's building is one of the parts of the city centre the council most wants to see regenerated.

Turning shopping centres into homes has become a common approach in cities across the UK, as landlords and councils try to bring more people to live in town centres and support the shops, cafes and restaurants that remain.

Supporters say schemes like this could bring new life to a tired corner of the city centre, close to the tram, Snow Hill and Moor Street stations and the future HS2 terminus. Critics of earlier tower proposals in the city have raised concerns about the height of new buildings, the share of affordable homes and whether the city centre has enough schools, GP surgeries and green space for its fast-growing population.

A decision on the application is expected from the city council next year. Residents will be able to comment on the plans through the council's planning portal once the application has been validated.