More than 700 apartments are set to be built by the developer behind one of Birmingham's tallest buildings as it aims to kick-start a long-running regeneration scheme.
Moda Living is partnering with Birmingham City Council to redevelop Ludgate Hill Car Park in the Jewellery Quarter after acquiring Sterling Property Ventures' interest in the project.
It wants to build 720 apartments to rent, a gym, green spaces, roof terraces, communal lounges and workspaces as well as new shops and commercial space fronting onto Lionel Street.
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London-based Moda Living is currently on site in Broad Street where it is building The Mercian, a 42-storey tower containing 481 units to rent along with a 200-metre running track, gym and other communal facilities.
Commonly known as the 'bomb site', Ludgate Hill Car Park has been tabled for redevelopment for many years but proposals have failed to progress beyond the planning stage.
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The site was earmarked in the early 2000s as the location for a new bus station but that fell through.
Sterling Property Ventures, the city council's previous development partner and the company behind the 26-storey 103 Colmore Row, unveiled proposals in 2015 to build more than 300 apartments and 250,000 sq ft of office space in a project called Great Charles Square.
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A year later, it revealed revamped designs, this time to build 432 apartments, a hotel, serviced apartments and retail space after it was decided there were already enough office developments in the pipeline in Birmingham.
Since then, little has happened so the 2.6-acre site has continued as a car park.
As with The Mercian, Moda Living is working with funder Apache Capital Partners and this latest scheme brings its investment in Birmingham to £445 million and more than 1,200 units across the two sites.
Moda Living's managing director Tony Brooks said: "We are thrilled to progress with our Great Charles Street development, our second site in a city we love.
"We strongly believe that Birmingham is not only a great city to live, work and invest in but also to thrive in and we want to offer a unique way of living to the people of this amazing city for years to come.
"Our build-to-rent projects are changing the way people live and make their home today. The site will be an exciting new neighbourhood, adding to the prosperity of the city."
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Birmingham City Council leader Ian Ward added: "We are delighted to see Moda Living progressing with these hugely impressive plans to transform this long-vacant plot in the heart of our city.
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"Bringing quality new housing stock to the city is of paramount importance to this council.
"Our aim is to continue to create a world-class city centre for everyone to enjoy by planning for the next 20 years of transformation and growth and this project is an important part of that."
James Howarth, managing director of Sterling Property Ventures, said: "We were working with Moda Living on progressing the development after which Moda acquired our interest in the project."
Moda Living is holding a public consultation event to showcase designs for the new proposals on February 26 and 27 from 3pm to 8pm at St Paul's Church, St Paul's Square, in the Jewellery Quarter