Birmingham's Curzon Wharf: After 7 Years It's Finally Moving
Birmingham could see the world’s first mixed-use net zero carbon-ready development, if planners nod through the £360M Curzon Wharf scheme next week.
The project, long in gestation, is in the shadow of the city’s new high-speed rail station.
Birmingham planners will consider the scheme, which has been recommended for approval, at a meeting on 23 February.
Tani Dulay’s Woodbourne Group (Mill Street) Ltd is proposing outline planning permission for up to 620 residential homes; up to 732 purpose-built student accommodation bed spaces; and up to 130K SF of office research and development floorspace in towers of 14, 41 and 53 storeys.
Operators are already signed for the student housing and 498 units of build-to-rent.
However, the scheme downplays the co-living element, which had dogged earlier efforts to develop the Curzon Wharf scheme, and will involve a commitment that 3% of units are affordable plus the payment of at least £2.5M to meet community costs.
Birmingham City Council has been among the local authorities most sceptical about the growth of co-living, prompting developers to rethink.
The latest scheme focuses its shared space on purpose-built student accommodation, thus avoiding many of the concerns raised by pure co-living.
Woodbourne had originally proposed 265 co-living units as part of the scheme as far back as 2021.
The hybrid plans have been the process of seven years of consultation with the local authority and the public.
“This isn’t just another development, it’s a manifesto that will position Birmingham as the UK’s leading smart and sustainable city — as demonstrated by the highly successful eco-friendly delivery of the Commonwealth Games — helping to pave the way for the country’s Green Revolution,” Woodbourne Group CEO Tani Dulay said.
“It will act as a catalyst for the wider transformation of the Eastside area where a number of masterplans have been earmarked which otherwise would not be possible. It signposts Birmingham’s route to delivering transformational change to the city, promoting social, cultural and economic exchange in a truly transformative urban neighbourhood.”
The site is positioned on the northern entry to Birmingham on the A38 Aston Expressway just south of Dartmouth Circus, a site passed by as many as 21 million road users a year when entering the city centre from the north.
