Work has begun to prepare the former Irish Centre site in Birmingham for demolition ahead of the construction of a major new residential scheme.
Preparatory works have commenced to demolish the former Irish community centre at the corner of Chapel House Street and High Street, Digbeth, which will be replaced by a 48-storey apartment tower.
It will have 454 apartments with one or two bedrooms to rent only, a rooftop terrace and amenity space for residents including a gym and lounge.
The Irish Centre and the new apartment complex, called Tower Leaf, was consented in 2021.
The development team of Birmingham-based Court Collaboration and Warwick firm Gallagher Developments marked the start of works by burying a time capsule with a range of items linked to the history and heritage of the building and Irish community.
Sign up for your free West Midlands newsletter and follow us on LinkedIn
Email newsletters
BusinessLive is your home for business news from across the West Midlands including Birmingham, the Black Country, Solihull, Coventry and Staffordshire.
Click through here to sign up for our email newsletter and also view the broad range of other bulletins we offer including weekly sector-specific updates.
We will also send out 'Breaking News' emails for any stories which must be seen right away.
For all the latest stories, views and polls, follow our
Other local stakeholders joined the developer at the ceremony including demolition contractor McAuliffe Group and Birmingham City Council.
The site's acquisition has been funded by Gallagher Developments, the company of long-term collaborator Sir Tony Gallagher.
Most Read
He said: "Digbeth, and Birmingham as a whole, is now evolving in spectacular fashion. The investment and ambition of all those passionate about this city is shining through and it's incredibly exciting to see work starting at the former Irish Centre.
"It, of course, holds an extra special place in our hearts, filled with history and heritage and we'll honour that with the quality and care put into the scheme, creating places for the next generation to thrive."
Other city projects by Court Collaboration include the 51-storey One Eastside in Jennens Road which is currently under construction and will contain 667 apartments.
And in April, it in Brindley Drive to build 581 apartments in a complex reaching 46 storeys, to be called Ora.
Managing director Alex Neale added: "I want to thank everybody that has been involved in the planning and realisation of this project to date.
"There's been a lot of hard work so we're all thrilled to mark this milestone and can't wait to see the development take shape in the coming month and years.
"In 50 years, a future generation will unearth this capsule and enjoy the items we've all added, many of which are close to the hearts of our Irish friends here today."