Arden Cross moves forward as Solihull seeks £4.9m for £3.2bn scheme beside HS2 Interchange

One of the biggest regeneration projects on Birmingham's doorstep is set to take its next step. Solihull Council's cabinet will next week consider asking the combined authority for £4.9m to move the Arden Cross development forward, a scheme that is expected to see £3.2bn invested in 340 acres of land just over a mile east of Birmingham Airport.

The site lies next to HS2's new Interchange station and close to the NEC and Birmingham International railway station, making it one of the best-connected pieces of development land in the country, the Local Democracy Reporting Service reports in Birmingham Live.

What the council is being asked to approve

An item called the "Arden Cross Progress and Funding Update" is on the agenda for Solihull's next cabinet meeting. Councillors are being asked to approve the submission of a Strategic Outline Case to the combined authority on behalf of Muse Places Ltd, the council's development partner for the site.

According to the cabinet report, the bid "will seek £4.9million of WMCA grant funding to progress the strategic infrastructure design, technical development, preparation of outline planning documentation, and completion of early enabling works required to bring forward the Arden Cross Project."

If the combined authority approves the bid, the money would go to the council, which would then enter into a funding agreement with Muse for agreed activities. The report is careful to set limits on the decision: it covers only the submission of the bid, and does not commit the council to further spending on construction. A further report would come back to cabinet before any money for delivery was sought.

Homes, jobs and a health technology campus

Arden Cross is planned as a mixed-use development with thousands of homes and a new "HealthTech" campus. The land, a triangle of farmland bordered by the A45, the A452 and the M42, is roughly the size of London's Hyde Park.

In the summer the Department for Transport confirmed that development land around the HS2 Interchange station will be available from 2030. The regional mayor, Richard Parker, said at the time: "Arden Cross is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to create high-paid jobs, grow our cutting-edge businesses and provide the new homes our people need."

Open to new ideas

There has been recent speculation that Birmingham City Football Club could be interested in building a training complex and women's stadium on the land. Asked about it, Solihull Council's leader, Councillor Karen Grinsell, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service: "There is an outline plan for the site. There are no known conversations about any other use of the land." She added: "It is the time for any other interested parties who want to step forward."

Why it matters to Birmingham

Arden Cross sits on the eastern edge of the conurbation, but its effects would be felt across the city. HS2 trains will take passengers from the Interchange station to London, and the site is a short journey from Birmingham city centre by rail. Large employers on the campus would draw staff from across Birmingham and Solihull, and new homes there would add to the supply the area badly needs.

The cabinet meets in the Civic Suite on 12 November, and the meeting can be watched live from 6pm on the council's website, solihull.gov.uk.