Plans to demolish market submitted for third time

Plans to demolish a historic indoor market have been recommended for approval after being submitted for a third time.

Developers revealed last year they wanted to bulldoze the Birmingham Bull Ring site to make way for housing.

The proposed development, on Edgbaston Street, would provide up to 745 apartments, or about 1,500 student bedrooms, in the city centre.

Some traders have sold from the site for years, but that could end amid the plans, which go before city council planning committee members on 3 July, with officers suggesting they back the scheme.

The market is located on the ground floor of Edgbaston Street Car Park, which is owned by property giant Hammerson. It is run by Birmingham City Council and the local authority provides traders with their leases.

Developers have revealed plans for a temporary alternative market site at the location of the city's former wholesale market, to which traders would be moved.

The plan would then see them relocate into a new permanent building within the wider development site there, Smithfield.

Plans for the indoor market were submitted for a second time in February, and were also recommended for approval.

The council said it would submit an application for funding to secure the replacement markets, but some members were concerned the new space could not be guaranteed, and a decision was deferred.

Ahead of the proposal being considered for a third time next week, an update within council documents said there was now "an increased level of certainty over future market provision".

The update revealed that meetings between council leaders, applicant Hammerson and the firm behind the Smithfield development had secured an extension of the lease on the current indoor market until March 2027.

This provided the "necessary time" to deliver a temporary market ahead of the transition to a permanent one, the report stated.

The council added a business case for funding had been approved by the Enterprise Zone Partnership Board, and would be presented to cabinet prior to a formal bid.

The council added it was negotiating with Lendlease over delivering the temporary market and that the plan provided a "credible" way forward and continuity for traders.

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.

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