Lego sticks its neck out with new Birmingham attraction

A similar giraffe outside the Lego Centre in Berlin

First there was King Kong, now Birmingham is set to get another giant plastic animal landmark.

The operators of the city’s new Lego Discovery Centre – Alton Towers owner, Merlin Entertainments – has applied for planning permission to install two Lego giraffes at the entrance to the attraction, which is based in a redundant part of the Barclaycard Arena.

The giraffes will be similar to the figures installed outside a similar attraction in Berlin.

The significance of giraffes is not revealed in the application.

Merlin Entertainment secured planning permission for the 5,470m² Lego Discovery Centre earlier this year.

The facility will be the second of its kind in the UK after a similar venue in Manchester. It is not a theme park in the same way that Legoland in Windsor is but it will feature a 4D cinema, rides, interactive Lego-themed attractions, a small café and associated retail.

The investment is said to be significant, although no figure has been placed on it.

The new attraction is expected to do much to enhance the city’s tourism offer and make the arena even more of a key visitor destination.

The discovery centre will be split over three floors within the arena. The main attraction would be located within the existing basement car park, while above this and adjacent to the canal, a redundant service deck will be converted to create ancillary office and staff space.

To accommodate the main attraction area within the basement, 140 parking spaces will be removed from the arena’s overall parking provision of 1,995 spaces. The car parking spaces are currently located beneath a concrete deck which is open sided so the plan is to enclose this space.

The centre is likely to employ around 40-50 employees, with approximately a quarter being part-time positions. Temporary seasonal staff are also likely to be required.

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