Developers opt to fast-track Newhall Square hotel scheme

DEVELOPERS of a new hotel scheme in Birmingham’s historic Jewellery Quarter have chosen to implement fast-track construction methods on the build.

GB Building Solutions, part of Warwickshire-based GB Group,  has opted for a steel frame construction method for the £9.6m aparthotel scheme in Newhall Square.

The design of the building wraps around a three-storey Grade II listed Victorian warehouse which forms part of the site, which lies in the Jewellery Quarter Conservation Area.

The 170-bed aparthotel building, part of the wider Newhall Square mixed-used scheme, is for RO Developments. It has been pre-let to Irish operator Staycity and will complement its existing 78-bed aparthotel at the city’s Arcadian Centre.

Work commenced on site at the end of last month and is due to finish at the end of April 2015.

Martin Smout, executive chairman, GB Building Solutions said: “This is a prime brownfield site, the home of the city’s former Science Museum, where there has been some significant progress made in regenerating this historically significant area. Our team has chosen a construction method that prioritises site safety, an important consideration given the proximity of the listed building, the canal-side and Charlotte Street.”

Architect GWP has designed the five-storey building, which will open in May 2015.

GWP director Richard Townend said: “We are proud to continue our association with GB Building Solutions in the residential and accommodation sector. This will be our fifth scheme together and we are looking forward to delivering a successful project to Staycity’s exacting requirements.

“We are confident in jointly transforming this currently derelict site in the city centre’s conservation area into a vibrant development that reflect the requirements of the planners, client and tenant alike.”