BREAKING NEW GROUND IN SECOND CITY HOTSPOT!
4th February 2008
Above: 'Laying the foundations' for a much improved Chinese Quarter are (l to r) Mark Evans, Mike Southcombe and Paul Baxter.
Construction work is now underway on a pioneering £34 million apartment scheme in Birmingham's rapidly emerging Chinese Quarter that's already two thirds sold!
Latitude by George Wimpey City on Hurst/Bromsgrove Street is an eight storey, mixed use development on a land locked brownfield site that will constitute 189 designer apartments over seven distinctly different floors. This landmark building will also include some 12,000 sq.ft of commercial retail space across the ground floor.
Mike Southcombe, project director for George Wimpey City, explains: "We're delighted to be continuing the residential expansion of this now proven target area - which will become increasingly desirable as more exclusive properties are built. Latitude is also set to make a striking contribution to Birmingham's cityscape because the design we've come up with manages to create an impression of apartments ‘floating' above the more transparent ground and first floor structure."
Paul Baxter, regional director for the main contractor GB Building Solutions, says: "It's great to be properly underway because this kind of high profile city centre/mixed use scheme is what we do best. The central location means the site is very restricted for construction purposes - as it's basically an island in the middle of four roads that takes up the whole of the footprint of the land.
"The complex logistics of site access have been overcome by closing one road and utilising land opposite the site and we're working closely with George Wimpey City, the local Residents Association and local businesses to maximise efficiencies and output."
Mark Evans, partner at selling agents Knight Frank, adds: "We're also enjoying our first buy-to-live sales now because astute young professionals see the Chinese Quarter as the new place to be. They have some of the best bars and clubs in the city on Hurst Street, there's the acclaimed Hippodrome nearby, plus the fabulous restaurants and casinos of Chinatown and the Arcadian are on the doorstep too."
ENDS