Next phase for Edgbaston Village announced
As new operators open this autumn at Edgbaston Village, Calthorpe Estates is revealing plans to further enhance facilities and the public realm at Edgbaston’s new heart.
Neptune, the British bespoke kitchens, furniture and interior accessories retailer has recently opened at 16-18 Harborne Road, next to OKA home furnishings store. Along Harborne Road and Highfield Road now has a selection of bars, restaurants, cafes and retail.
Around the corner work has recently been completed to transform Victorian properties along Greenfield Crescent, one of the oldest surviving crescents in Birmingham, to create new retail, leisure, office and student accommodation. The sensitive conversion of 10-15 Greenfield Crescent has provided a range of retail sizes from 81 to 343 square meters (872 – 3,689 square feet) which has just seen the opening of EF Medispa and will shortly be joined by Loki wine merchant and deli.
This month Calthorpe Estates will submit plans to refurbish 5-6 Greenfield Crescent and add a rear extension sympathetic to the period property features. The extension will provide an opportunity to extend the retail area to 372 square meters (4,000 square feet) at the back and increase the office space above to deliver large open plan floor plates.
As Ralph Minott, Development Director, explained: “Our aim within Edgbaston Village is to retain the character of the properties to attract independent operators and rejuvenate this classic part of the estate. Created in the late 1800’s, the crescent is an unusual street for the Estate and its collection of semi-detached properties were quite a bold move from the classic Calthorpe Estate Villas of Highfield and Calthorpe Road. Bringing new life to Greenfield Crescent is something of a revival for the team, transforming the place, that through the 70’s and 80’s was a thriving hub of construction consultants, architects, engineers and quantity surveyors, to a vibrant mixed-use leisure and lifestyle location.
“This year we have also invested in improving and creating over 200 car park spaces on land behind the Greenfield Crescent and Highfield Road properties, and the final phase of car parking will be completed alongside the 5-6 Greenfield Crescent project.
“The plans for 5-6 Greenfield Crescent will add a number of striking features as part of the proposals, such as glazing treatments making natural light a key feature of all the letting spaces, while truly integrating the restaurant experience as part of the improved public realm, with an attractive al fresco front terrace dining area designed as part of the scheme.”
Along with the buildings and car parking, Calthorpe Estates plan to carry out improvements to the Greenfield Crescent public realm over the coming six months, working closely with Birmingham City Council. This will include street scape works, including link walkways and new wayfinding features, helping to bring the Edgbaston Village amenities together.
Edgbaston architects, SR Davis Architects, Couch Consulting, ESC and RPS are supporting the Calthorpe Estates development, with Arcadis Planning leading on the planning application.