Boom ahead for Birmingham construction

The construction industry in Birmingham is set for a bumper year as the 2022 Commonwealth Games provides a stimulus for billions of pounds of investment in the city.

McLaughlin & Harvey is finishing off a £57 million redevelopment of the Alexander stadium to host the Games (Project ID: 17459888), and a swathe of other much bigger schemes are about to transform Birmingham.

The biggest construction project is the £1.9 billion Smithfield scheme (Project ID: 15321175), which is a joint venture between Birmingham City Council and Lendlease. The city centre redevelopment will provide 2,000 homes and retail units and construction will run for 15 years.

Moda Living’s £109 million The Mercian is under construction. The 61-storey tower featuring more than 500 apartments will be Birmingham’s tallest building and will transform the skyline (Project ID: 05367101). Glenigan has identified many more major residential schemes in the city.

Residential rise

The residential sector is driving the boom with 14 new projects starting on site in 2021 compared to just four in the previous year according to Deloitte’s latest Crane Hire Survey for Birmingham.

“2022 will be a standout year for Birmingham,” said Deloitte in their foreword. “This year’s Crane Survey shows that development in Birmingham city centre continues with certain major residential and office developments leading the way.”

The £700 million Paradise Circus development will provide 140,000 sqm of office buildings and a hotel (Project ID: 16088712). One of the biggest phases is the £110 million Octagon building, which contractor Midgaard started work on late last year (Project ID: 20106292).

In the residential sector, Bordesley Wharf development on a former bus depot in Digbeth will produce 2,000 homes and student flats (Project ID: 20186967).

Elsewhere, outline plans were approved in February for the £500 million Martineau Galleries scheme, which will provide 1,300 new homes and shops at Queensway. Work is expected to start next summer (Project ID: 05669647).

Dandara have submitted outline plans for the £204 million Warner’s Fields residential development at Lombard. This scheme will provide 1,500 homes and construction could start early next year, depending on planning (Project ID: 21464654).

Other sectors

Away from the commercial and residential sectors, a host of other major projects in Birmingham are also set to provide a major fillip.

A joint venture between Mace and Spanish contractor Dragados is lined up to build the £571 million Curzon Street Station, which will be the travel hub for the city’s High Speed Rail 2 (HS2) connection (Project ID: 17142804).

A £200 million refurbishment of Birmingham’s Moor Street area – which will link New Street Station and HS2 services at Curzon Street - is due to start this summer (Project ID: 19088485).

Detailed plans have also been submitted by GS Trust for the £22 million Embrace Foundation Community Mosque which Glenigan’s research suggests could start in September if the application proves successful (Project ID: 20463768).

From residential to offices and transport to new places of worship, Birmingham looks set for a major transformation that should keep the area’s construction industry in work for years.

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