Brindleyplace, Birmingham: Creating an Inner City Mixed-use Development in Times of Recession

This article tells the story of Brindleyplace, a pioneering mixed-use development in Birmingham, UK. It describes how the development was delivered according to a masterplan and pioneering 'partnering arrangements whereby contractors were involved with architects in designing the buildings. The scheme created new commercial squares, brought activity to historic canalsides, and included the first private housing development of any significance in inner city Birmingham since the Second World War. However, it could have been very different. The City Council assembled the site, set out a vision, and selected a consortium of developers. During a recession, a new and more flexible masterplan was developed. When the site went into receivership, the Council was able to enforce clauses in the development agreement with the result that the receiver sold it to a new developer, Argent, for a fraction of the price paid four years previously. Argent subsequently constructed individual buildings as and when the market allowed. What happened therefore illustrates the role of external events, in this case, the property crash of 1989, in the development process, as well as the contribution that can be made by a robust yet flexible vision and a masterplan emphasizing quality of design. It shows how property development is not necessarily a linear process and that public sector land owners can sometimes achieve positive outcomes by taking advantage of opportunities opened up by financial distress.