[To receive a verbal update from the Director of Regeneration on the Regeneration Projects taking place within the City of Wolverhampton].
Minutes:
A short video was displayed showing some of the Council’s regeneration projects within the City.
The Head of City Development presented slides on some of the Council’s key regeneration projects in the City. The Lower Horseley Fields would provide 370 residential units incorporating the historic Union Mill buildings. The planning application had been submitted on 6 November 2020. A CGI video was shown on how the project would look. Construction was expected to start in 2021.
The Head of City Development spoke on the Interchange project. This was a partnership delivery between the Council, Network Rail and Transport for West Midlands. It was a fully integrated multi-modal transport hub. Phase 1 of the new station facility had now been completed and was open to the public. Phase 2 was well underway and was scheduled for completion in Spring 2021. The Metro line extension, which would terminate outside the train station, was due for completion in the latter part of 2021. The Interchange project had been shortlisted for the RTPI Award for Planning Excellence and also for three Insider West Midlands Property Awards.
The Head of City Development talked about the i9 Project. This was a 50,000 square foot office floorspace. It was an award winning Glenn Howells designed building. It had had been designed to achieve BREEAM ‘Excellent’ rating and WiredScore ‘Gold’ Standard. Construction was well underway and the contractor Grahams were currently on programme to complete the building in the Summer of 2021.
The Head of City Development referred to the Civic Halls Project. This was a £38 million investment into future proofing the largest entertainment, events and leisure venue in the Black Country. The structural steel was being delivered to the site, with installation work having started. Works to the main roof had commenced with a construction completion projected in late 2021. A bid to the Future High Streets Fund had been submitted with an aim to secure funding to support the delivery of the public realm works outside the Civic Halls. The Civic Halls project it was hoped would help reinvigorate the City’s night time economy.
The Head of City Development presented a slide on i54, which was a continuing success. The i54 Western Extension (South) was a joint venture between City of Wolverhampton Council and Staffordshire County Council. The scheme would provide up to 100,000 m2 of B1 and B2 end uses and generate up to 1,700 new jobs. The Southern 60-acre site was under development and was controlled by City of Wolverhampton Council. The project was currently scheduled to deliver on time and very much on budget.
Panel Members praised the positivity of the presentation. A Panel Member praised the interchange project and commented that he hoped to see the metro line further extended in the future to other parts in Wolverhampton. The Director for Regeneration responded that discussions with the WMCA were taking place around the metro line extending through the City and linking in i54 and the hospital site. They were strategic conversations at the present time, but it was an aspiration to increase the metro line. He was hoping the i54 extension would generate as many jobs as possible. Whilst it would be tempting to rent the site to a logistics company to gain a high amount of business rates, this would not lead to the scale of job creation for which they were aiming.
A Panel Member commented that the West Side Project had not been included in the presentation and asked for an update on the project. The Director for Regeneration responded that that they continued to liaise with the developer Urban and Civic. Odeon were not progressing talks at the current time because of the Covid-19 situation.
A Panel Member asked what interest there had been from businesses looking to lease or rent i9 floor space. The Director for Regeneration responded that it was generating interest because of its ideal location to the train station and significant floor space available in the building. They were talking to a number of potential end users and he was confident that they would secure some pre-lets before it was opened next Summer.