The £500m athletes’ village for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham has been scrapped.
Construction delays, exacerbated by the coronavirus pandemic, were blamed for the decision to scrap ambitious plans to build accommodation for as many as 6,500 athletes in Perry Barr.
The athletes’ village was also struggling to fall within its budget.
Competitors will now be dispersed to three different sites, the University of Birmingham, the University of Warwick and the NEC Hotel Campus.
However, the council-led regeneration will continue and will be used to provide local housing.
Birmingham City Council is working with Lendlease as development partner to deliver the 1,400 homes in a project expected to cost in excess of £496m, with £165.5m from central government and the council to borrow the remaining £300m.
The village is part of a wider regeneration of the Perry Barr, North Birmingham area, which is set to ultimately deliver 5,000 new homes.
Ian Reid, chief executive of Birmingham 2022, said: “These are challenging times for all of us and delivering a major multi sports event during this period has meant we have needed to collaborate effectively, be pragmatic to change, and remain realistic about the challenges we face.”
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