Edgbaston Mill (Tally Ho Site)

[rob_right]

To be honest this is the standard fare for apartment blocks - can't say i'm hugely excited either way. You will see identical in every city up and down the UK including the capital, definitely not just a brum thing.

[Biosonic]

Originally Posted by Elizabeth Kinoke

sorry to sound negative but this looks truly revolting and cheap for Edgbaston. Beige cladding akimbo. Once again, Brum atracts medicore architects IMO.

I don't understand who would want to buy one of these? I wouldn't even view it. I'm not saying this for effect or to to offend anyone, but the design is so basic and child like.

??

The apartments are already built and are very nice. The hotel and commercial bit is the undeveloped part and that was designed by a Birmingham architect.

[KHvillan]

Quite. The built apartments are very nice - much nicer than some of the stuff built in the City Centre. Just a pity they are out on a limb waiting for the remainder of the site to be developed.

[OperateOnMe]

I want one, particularly one of the flat looking over the River Rea. Spent the day with my mum in the park and have to say it looks impressive from the Mac entrance. I do like the way it blends in with the park farcade. Pity about the painted corrugated warehouse look of the new Mac though

[Elizabeth Kinoke]

Originally Posted by OperateOnMe

I want one, particularly one of the flat looking over the River Rea. Spent the day with my mum in the park and have to say it looks impressive from the Mac entrance. I do like the way it blends in with the park farcade. Pity about the painted corrugated warehouse look of the new Mac though

sorry guys, I walk around with my eyes open, I like to thin kof myself of fairly well travelled and Brum just seems to be getting some really poor buildings that will not last aesthetically today let alone twenty years down the line. Future projects are cheap and tacky mostly, maybe it's down to developers spending money on architects they can afford at the return they can expect. There are some great projects going up and more planned but honestly, I'm left dissapointed with so much. I preferred the other cube designs and we ended up with something that is possibly the biggest mistake the cith has seen since New Street/?? not sure, time will tell, those panels look dirty already close up.

[Soul_13]

The apartment bit it's really nice, blends in really good with the park.

[Biosonic]

The panels WILL look dirty as construction is a dirty game. Sadly Britain suffers from large amounts of poor architecture and construction, not just Brum. That's because of root & branch failures - money-grabbing developers, poor architects, underfunded and untrained planners, disengaged and disinterested public.

[OFFTOPIC] Did you really prefer the other designs to the Cube, or do you prefer the other very early visuals compared to what is built now? If the latter, then I promise none of them would have turned out the way they were drawn[/OFFTOPIC]

[Elizabeth Kinoke]

Originally Posted by Biosonic

The panels WILL look dirty as construction is a dirty game. Sadly Britain suffers from large amounts of poor architecture and construction, not just Brum. That's because of root & branch failures - money-grabbing developers, poor architects, underfunded and untrained planners, disengaged and disinterested public.

[OFFTOPIC] Did you really prefer the other designs to the Cube, or do you prefer the other very early visuals compared to what is built now? If the latter, then I promise none of them would have turned out the way they were drawn[/OFFTOPIC]

I know what you're saying Bio and I agree mostly, I'm just puzzled as to why other cities seem to get more attractive architecture, maybe we are still a bit of soft touch in the planning department? I think that projects like V Tower look great, but others like the Cube, New Library and New STreet were all the wrong choices totally.

In retrospect, I prefer the other design concepts, almost all of them actually, I was initially intrigued by the Cube design, but I kind of knew it would be a bit hit and miss, from a distance it looks strange and unusual but up close I struggle to see the appeal, it's just small touches like the vents and cladding tint, I think Birmingham needs more glass structures, preferably not green like Snow Hill.

[feltip]

Going to Planning Committee 15th October

Report Title: Land at the former Tally Ho site, Edgbaston Mill, 209 Edgbaston Road - S/00716/01/OUT and S/07766/05/OUT
Purpose: To determine the Planning Application

209 Edgbaston Road,Edgbaston Mill,Edgbaston,Birmingham
Mixed use commercial block including a hotel, restaurants, D2 leisure space, car park
and landscaping

Recommendation
Approve - Conditions

Proposal
This is a detailed planning application (rather than a Reserved Matters submission), made
in respect of part of the commercial phase (phase 3) for the Tally Ho! site. Outline planning permission was previously granted under S/07766/05/OUT for a mixed-use development.
The applicants, Calthorpe Edgbaston Mill Limited, are seeking planning permission for Phases 3B and 3C of the wider commercial phase 3, which has been split into three separate phases. The first development phase (Phase 1) was for the advanced infrastructure including the new access onto Edgbaston Road and the internal road,
drainage, footpaths and structural landscaping layout. This has, in part been implemented
on site. The second development phase is almost complete and was for the construction of 344 apartments. Phase 3A was approved in April 2007 and was for a mixed use scheme
that included two food retail units, leisure use and two restaurants along with an ancillary service yard, car park and landscaping.

This application is for the construction of a mixed-use commercial block including 9 units
falling within Use Classes A1 and/or A3/A4 along with a D2 leisure use and a 200-bedroom
hotel. The proposed uses, with the exception of the hotel, were previously considered
acceptable through the outline planning permission. The retail/leisure units would be
located on the 'Boulevard' and 'Edgbaston Square' frontage at ground floor level. The
development would comprise a new build floorspace of 13,145sq.m. The hotel would be
located above the ground floor units and would be accessed from a ground floor lobby up
to the first floor where the reception area would be located.

Below the development, it is proposed to construct a partly undercroft basement car park (that would adjoin that approved for Phase 3A) providing a further 116 spaces including spaces for people with mobility difficulties. A cycle parking area is also proposed within the basement car park as a whole. The basement would be accessed from a spur road to the west of the Phase 3A development (and was approved as part of that reserved matters permission), opposite Edgbaston Square.

The materials proposed for the buildings include a buff limestone coloured multi-textured
reconstituted stone, grey capless curtain walling to the inset panels within the stone, cream render to the hotel building with aluminium powder coated pressed metal eaves, grey rockpanel panels for the top floor and an anodised aluminium kalzip roof. The buildings would also have an element of kalwall to provide light internally to the buildings. Part of the rear elevation of the building (facing Queens Ride) will also be visible from the Edgbaston Road frontage.
The Queens Ride and service yard elevations would include a number of the same materials as the frontage elevations but would use a multi red brick instead of reconstituted stone and a solid grey panelling rather than the grey curtain walling. This is in accordance with what has previously been approved within Phase 3A.

Planning Considerations
This application seeks detailed planning permission for part of the commercial phase
(Phase 3) previously granted planning permission under outline consent S/07766/05/OUT.
The application has been submitted as a detailed submission rather than a reserved
matters submission due to the addition of a hotel that was not included in the outline
consent.

Massing
The massing relates to the overall height of the development and site coverage.
Phases 3B and 3C are primarily six storeys in height (equating to 8 storeys in residential
storey heights), comprising of ground and first to sixth floors, the majority of which relates to the proposed hotel building.

At its highest, the building would be approximately 26metres in height from finished ground level and 15 metres in height from finished ground level at its lowest, adjacent to Queens Ride. The building would be raised on a plinth (approximately 2 metres in height) to incorporate the basement car park (as per the Phase 3A approval).

[Biosonic]

It's been lurking around for some time - do we know why?

[woodhousen]

id image an awful lot of lacal opposition... they are a very vocal and powrful group there

[nigeman]

I visited the apartment showroom a couple of weeks ago pretending to be intersted in buying an apartment but saying I wasn't too keen unless they got on with the commercial element, cos I didn't want to be looking out over a building site for the next few years
They said that Holiday Inn pulled out of the scheme some time ago and they were looking for a new Hotel operator, Somerfield were going for the express supermarket which thay thought may start towards the end of the year.
Can't understand why this scheme would be so hard to attract interest, even in this climate. An hotel in this location along with a couple of restaurants, alongside the cricket stadium, the MAC, the park and simply being in Edgbaston I would have thought would have had developers queueing up. There maybe local opposition, but outline planning was acheived ages ago.I think it is important for the Cricket ground too that this scheme succeeds.

[feltip]

Be interesting to see why Holiday Inn Express pulled out. It may have depended on who would have operated the franchise as M & B operate a fair few in the Midlands and with their own financial issues maybe they couldn't get it to run. Like you say it's an enviable location for a hotel. Hopefully another operator is thinking behind the scenes.

[Biosonic]

I think they've put general expansion on hold for now (other than franchises?)

[Erebus555]

I think they've decided to focus more on their worldwide expansion - especially in the Gulf States and Far East. Their expansion plans in America and the rest of Europe seem to be on hold for a bit.

[woodhousen]

well origianlly the supermarket was meant to be a MnS simply food but alas, we know what has happened to them.... poor clathorpe and edgbaston mill

[depechemad]

would have thought hotel operaters would be jumping to get their hands on this plot, obviously not.
always thought it was funny that there wasnt a hotel near to the cricket ground.Not that it wouldbe filled all year by cricket fans but only 5 min from town thought it would be sought after

[Spread]

I understand that Holiday Inn are still on board for this one. I also note that the images on the Cordwell site show actual restaurant chains rather then generic images, presumably these are tenants that have actually signed up. They are Pizza Express, Nandos and Loch Fyne (the last one particularly is really good news):

http://www.cordwellproperty.co.uk/edgbastonmill.htm

[nigeman]

Originally Posted by Spread

I understand that Holiday Inn are still on board for this one. I also note that the images on the Cordwell site show actual restaurant chains rather then generic images, presumably these are tenants that have actually signed up. They are Pizza Express, Nandos and Loch Fyne (the last one particularly is really good news):

http://www.cordwellproperty.co.uk/edgbastonmill.htm

Hope you're right Spread, this development and the Cricket Ground and the rebuilt MAC will really transform the dynamics of this area.
Visitors can then spend a day at the cricket, a show at the MAC and a meal at the Mill, before spending the night in the Holiday Inn. I can envisage weekend breaks being advertised in Edgbaston

[feltip]

Good to hear they are all still involved. When went to look at show apartment last year they said Pizza Express was one of units. Like you say would be a great spot for weekend break.