An investment deal has been struck to kickstart a 1,000-unit residential development in Birmingham city centre.
Finance group Aviva and developer Moda have teamed up with Homes England, NatWest and the West Midlands Combined Authority to work together on the £280 million Stone Yard scheme in Digbeth.
The four-acre project at the corner of Alcester Street and High Street Deritend has consent for 995 apartments to rent and landscaped public areas alongside 30,000 sq ft of co-working spaces, gym and fitness studios, lounges, private dining rooms and commercial units.
The funding package includes debt financing from NatWest and Homes England via the Home Building Fund.
This will support the delivery of phase one of the project comprising 605 apartments across four blocks.
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In addition, the West Midlands Combined Authority has provided brownfield grant funding, enabling the project to increase its affordable housing provision to 20 per cent which will be offered at a discounted market rent.
These units will be dispersed throughout the development.
A future development phase will deliver a further three blocks, bringing the total number of homes at Stone Yard to 995 and reaching 32 storeys at its highest point.
Last year, Homes England signed a so-called ‘strategic place partnership' with the combined authority, setting out shared ambitions to advance local housing growth and regeneration in key locations, including the east Birmingham to north Solihull corridor.
Homes England has supplied debt funding of around £40 million to the Stone Yard financing package.
Initial work has started on site at the Stone Yard and phase one is due for completion in 2028.
The buildings and new public realm will be operated by Harrogate-based Moda which is also behind The Mercian in Broad Street, which opened in 2022, and a new project in Great Charles Street currently under construction.
Sophie White, regeneration sector lead at Aviva Capital Partners, said: "We're delighted to be working with Moda to provide high-quality accommodation in Birmingham, helping to support the local economy and beyond.
"The partnership with NatWest, Homes England and West Midlands Combined Authority has been critical in getting the scheme under way for this key brownfield site in Digbeth.
"Sustainability is at the heart of this development, with community and affordability critical elements helping to ensure it supports the local area to get ready for the future."
Moda's executive chairman Tony Brooks added: "This milestone is a powerful demonstration of what can be achieved when the public and private sectors work collaboratively to realise a shared, long-term vision for regeneration.
"Aligned, we will be able to deliver much-needed new rental homes, at pace.
"With high-quality new public realm completing the neighbourhood, Stone Yard will be a pivotal part of the wider regeneration of Digbeth, transforming a brownfield site into a thriving urban community."
