Joined
·
39,751 Posts


http://www.skyscrapernews.com/news.php?ref=596
2006-05-14 >
Arena Central To Be A UK First
The decade long Arena Central saga in Birmingham city centre looks close to finally coming to fruition after years of uncertainty.
Having been surrounded by numerous rumours recently, Steve Evens, the head of Miller Developments has finally broken the silence to give Skyscrapernews.com an exclusive update on how the development is progressing.
Following a number of rumours stating that a final height of the tower has been decided upon, it would appear that this is still not the case. However, Miller is still committed to maximising consent for the tower which currently stands at over 180m.
Correspondence between Miller Developments and Birmingham city council continue to be close and positive strides are being made. Although the height of the tower is yet to be decided, it would appear a final design of between 40 and 50 storeys has been adopted. A number of high-spec renderings have been drawn up in an effort to ensure that all views of the tower are of the highest quality and it relates properly to its surroundings.
Steven Evens stated "the calibre of the tower will be higher than anything currently in the city and also in Manchester".
The design of the tower is to be a UK first and was likened to "a tube of toothpaste, squeezed in at one place and bulging out at others".
After a long hiatus, the pace at which this development has been progressing has suddenly increased in recent months. Arena Central Ltd, a joint venture between Miller Developments and Andy Ruhan's Bridgehouse Capital attended this years MIPM conference in Canes to market the scheme to the international office market.
Also, in an atempt to have more influence in the development of Arena Central, Birmingham city council purchased the former TSB bank house, the last remaining stake of Hampton Trust in the Arena Central project.
A formal application should finally be in sooner than later and planning permission is expected to be received before the end of the year. Once approved, work is expected to start quickly.
Arena Central
Cost: £500m circa
Use: Residential/Office/Hotel/Leisure
Status: Approved
Start: 2012
Finish: 2018 est.
NEWS: 300 bed hotel will begin construction Q4 2012. V Tower will proceed once residential market picks up. Increase in office space approved from 500,000 sqft to 800,000 sqft.
Design's for masterplan and hotel still to be revealed.
V Tower
![]()
![]()