Birmingham council has unveiled six new economic growth zones aiming to unlock £1.5bn of new development.
The council’s launch of its economic zones prospective could open up nearly 20m sq ft across the city.
Estates Gazette revealed the council was planning the zones in June (30 June, p67).
The zones will focus on several sectors, including logistics, medical technology, IT and media and the environment.
They will provide simplified planning for developers, gap funding for new developments and existing business space, and access to loans, equity finance and business development programmes for new occupiers.
The zones – devised following research from the council in collaboration with inward investment programme Business Birmingham – will be based at the following sites:
? Advanced Manufacturing Hub at the Aston Regional Investment Site (pictured)
? Tyseley Environmental Enterprise District
? Life Sciences Campus at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and University of Birmingham in Edgbaston
? The Food Hub at the former IMI site in north Birmingham
? City Centre Enterprise Zone
? Longbridge ITEC Park
The £97m Advanced Manufacturing Hub at the 50-acre Aston Regional Investment site has potential for more than 1m sq ft of industrial space to support the city’s growing automotive and aerospace sectors. This will be the first zone to be rolled out to investors, and is available for immediate occupation.
The public sector has already invested £16m buying land at the site – the council owns 11 acres, with the Homes & Communities Agency holding a further 20 acres.
Savills is advising the council and the HCA on the AMH site.
Sir Albert Bore, leader of Birmingham council, said: “There is an increasing need to make Birmingham’s economic development globally relevant. Our economic zones – led by the city’s new Advanced Manufacturing Hub – form a proposition that international investors cannot ignore, and will become the cornerstone of our economic success for decades to come.”
lisa.pilkington@estatesgazette.com
