Kier tweaks Arena Central plans

Kier Property has submitted fresh plans for its redevelopment at 5 Centenary Square in Birmingham’s Arena Central. The new plans come after consent secured in 2021 expired. The latest application for 5 Centenary Square, which will be the third office block developed at Arena Central, is largely similar to the 2021 plans and proposes a 10-storey office building of 280,863 sq ft, 12 car parking spaces and a 160-space cycle hub with changing rooms. A small space for a shop or café has been added to the plans, while the reception has been reconfigured and made bigger to accommodate access to the cycle hub, and the core of the building has been amended to enable greater flexibility for tenant subdivision. In its application, Kier said the arrival of HSBC and a government hub at Arena Central had proved the development was a “successful business cluster”. HSBC bought the 210,000 sq ft 1 Centenary Square in 2015 for its own occupation, while HMRC, the Department for Work & Pensions and the Valuation Office Agency moved into 3 Arena Central in 2021. The £81m scheme was designed by Make Architects.