Agenda item

The Business, Economy and Enterprise Scrutiny Board (3) received a briefing note of the Director of Property Services and Development, which provided an update on progress with key regeneration projects in the city, namely City Centre South, Friargate and Coventry Station.

In relation to City Centre South, the Board acknowledged that the regeneration of the city centre was a key priority for the Council and would deliver transformational improvements to Coventry city centre through new homes, jobs, commercial and leisure opportunities and high-quality public spaces.

The scheme was being brought forward through a partnership between the Council and Shearer Property Group (SPG) and was supported by £98.8m grant funding from the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA).  This grant was funding key enabling costs such as land assembly, demolition and reimbursement payments to the Council for the loss of its existing income producing commercial scheme.

It was noted that the Cabinet had recently received a report which had included a number of recommendations, including authority to make a Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO), appropriate land interests and take a number of ancillary decisions relating to planning, land and highway matters.

It was anticipated that a CPO would be made during March 2022 and, if necessary, an Inquiry would be held during the Autumn of 2022.  Dialogue was ongoing between SPG and a funding and development partner in order to deliver the scheme.  Whilst outline planning consent was in place, it was expected that a Reserved Matters planning application would be submitted during 2022 which would set out detailed proposal for the scheme, including design and the amount of space for different uses and phasing.  Vacant possession of the site was expected to be achieved by early 2023.

The delivery of the Friargate District was another key priority for the Council and £51.2m grant funding was secured from the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) in 2018 to support the delivery of the next commercial office building, Two Friargate.

Two Friargate would deliver 123,000 sqft of high quality lettable office space which would be able to compete with the best the wider region was able to offer.  It would also provide the opportunity for significant jobs and business growth in the City.  Construction on the building had begun in November 2020 and was due to be completed before the end of 2022.  It also has its own dedicated website which provides information about the building.

Overall, the Friargate District would have a range of uses and offers.  The Council was working with hotel developers Castlebridge to bring forward a new four-star Hotel Indigo opposite the Council’s One Friargate office building.  Building work was scheduled to commence in Spring 2022 with completion and opening during 2023.  Further work was ongoing with the owners of the Friargate site, Friargate JV Project Limited, to assess the opportunity for residential developments, which would provide the opportunity to create a new mixed-use neighbourhood in a highly sustainable part of the City.

The Board were advised that the works on the £79m Coventry Station Masterplan were near completion.  There had been delays to the opening date due to ongoing minor defects and snagging corrections by the Contractor which required completion before the Council could accept the station and pass it to Network Rail / Avanti.  It was now expected that all of the new facilities, including a car park, new concourse areas, footbridge and transport interchange, would be open and operational during the spring.

The Board sought clarification on a number of points, which in summary included the level of experience the developers have had with schemes the size of City Centre South; what the mix of residential properties would be within the Friargate District, including whether there would be affordable housing; whether any organisations had expressed an interest in Two Friargate; and whether there continued to be a pedestrian exit for the south side of the station.  It was confirmed that SPG were an experienced developer with experience working with numerous local authorities on schemes. In relation to the mix of residential properties, it was explained that the outline planning consent set out the housing parameters and whilst there was enthusiasm to include affordable housing within the development, this would be determined as part of the detailed planning consent.  The Board were advised that discussions had been ongoing between the Friargate letting agents and a number of organisations in respect of Two Friargate and, although none had yet signed agreements, this was not unusual when there were still a further 8 months until completion. It was unclear whether the Station retains a pedestrian access to the south but officers undertook to find out and advise members of the outcome.

RESOLVED that, the Business, Economy and Enterprise Scrutiny Board (3) note the content of the briefing note and confirm there are no comments or recommendations to the appropriate Cabinet Member.