Broadway Malyan drafted in to complete Snow Hill Masterplan team
ARCHITECT Broadway Malyan has been appointed to a £10m project to help transform Birmingham’s bustling business quarter.
The practice has been appointed on a two-phase scheme that will see it completely reimagine the public realm across the Snow Hill Masterplan area.
Funding for the project, which is one of the largest schemes of its kind in the UK, has been allocated by the Greater Birmingham & Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership Growth Fund to a joint bid by Birmingham City Council and the Colmore Business Improvement District.
Broadway Malyan, which has its Birmingham studio in Edmund Street, has been appointed alongside a professional team including transport specialist JMP, civil engineers WYG and mechanical and electrical consultant Hoare Lea.
The first phase of the project will see improvements to the square outside Snow Hill Station, while the second phase will see improvements across the Colmore BID area.
Danny Crump, who is leading the project for Broadway Malyan, said the ultimate aim of the project was to create a public realm befitting a world class district in the UK’s second city.
He said: “With Birmingham Cathedral at its heart and flanked by magnificent buildings like the Grand Hotel, the Colmore area really is one of the finest areas of any of our great cities but there are a number of localised physical problems that have a significant negative impact.
“For all the wonderful architecture, this is a road-dominated environment with a poor pedestrian experience and an uninspiring sense of arrival to this important commercial hub when leaving Snow Hill Station.
“The heavily urbanised city centre has multiple constraints, many of which have evolved over years of organic growth and change and so we will be working with key stakeholders – fundamentally the people who live and work in the area – to really unravel the components of the place and then deliver a transformational scheme that is both creative and aspiration yet practical and technically sound.”
The first phase of the project will be to define and identify a series of key projects within the Snow Hill area with the aim of reducing traffic impact and improving the pedestrian experience.
“This is an amazing project for Broadway Malyan to be involved in which will set the highest benchmark for city centre public realm and the fact that we are based within the BID district gives us a real insight into the issues and opportunities for the Snow Hill area,” added Mr Crump.
Cllr John Clancy, leader of Birmingham City Council, said: “It’s exciting to see this amazing project starting to gather pace. The Snow Hill Masterplan is a bold vision for the continued transformation of Birmingham’s thriving business district.
“Birmingham is a hugely investable city and this is yet more proof of our determination to build on the growing confidence in our city.”
Simon Marks, Board Director for Optimising Assets at Greater Birmingham and Solihull LEP said: “This is an important project for Birmingham and GBSLEP as part of the long term vision to transform this area of the city centre. This appointment is another milestone in the realisation of the Snow Hill Masterplan and the continued investment in the city.”
