The third part of our West Midlands business review of 2024 moves into the summer months and starts with news that the city region had been named as host of the Invictus Games parasport festival in 2027.
After initially being shortlisted in May, Birmingham was chosen ahead of rival bidder Washington DC to welcome the festival of sport featuring injured and sick military personnel.
The Invictus Games is the brainchild of Prince Harry and has only been held in the º£½ÇÊÓƵ once before - the inaugural games in London in 2014.
The NEC Campus in Solihull will be the epicentre of the event when it rolls into town in July 2027, with sports such as archery, indoor rowing and cycling among those likely to be included.
West Midlands' public transport users were handed more bad news in July when it emerged the planned completion
A trio of new railway stations on the Camp Hill line south of Birmingham - Kings Heath, Moseley and Pineapple Road - and phase one of the Wednesbury to Brierley Hill tram extension have not meet their planned deadlines of the end of 2024.
Transport for West Midlands said the delays had been caused by the projects rising in cost by £121 million.
New railway stations in Willenhall and Darlaston, due for completion in early 2025, also had to be delayed until later next year or early 2026 while other planned schemes including Aldridge station and Hagley Road rapid transit in Birmingham were deferred or partially deferred until more funding becomes available.
University of Birmingham gave a teasing glimpse into the future in August when it unveiled ambitious plans for the future development of its Edgbaston campus.
New public spaces, facilities and student residences were among the which provided broad ideas about how the historic complex could be developed over the next two decades.
The university said the vision would bring new and improved social spaces while images hinted at the creation of buildings and the pedestrianisation of large parts of the campus.
It is the latest stage in a long-running programme of work which has seen new lecture buildings, a library, fitness centre and 'green heart' public space while a revamp of its neighbouring railway station also completed in January.
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Planning chiefs gave their backing to yet another tall residential tower in Birmingham.
Yorkshire developer Moda Group secured consent for the next phase of the New Garden Square project in Edgbaston in the shape of a 37-storey tower containing 462 apartments for rent alongside amenities.
The long-term aim for New Garden Square, in Hagley Road, is to have 2,400 new homes in a mix of tenures as well as a park and retail space across 11 acres.
The first phase, called Loudon's Yard, contains 398 units to rent and was fully completed in November.
A listed city centre pub which has endured a troubled recent history was brought back to life in September.
The Woodman, sitting on the doorstep of the new HS2 station in Birmingham's Eastside district, was given a £300,000 makeover and reopened after two years of not trading.
Stockport-based John Brearley, a retired accountant who once worked for legendary brewery Boddingtons and is a lifelong lover of old boozers, took on the project through his own company Union Inns.
The pub, which dates back to 1897, traded until 2009 but closed down for four years before reopening.
Sadly, the plug was pulled again in 2022 after what the previous owner called "relentless encroachment" from the construction of the neighbouring HS2 station.
Major restoration plans were unveiled for one of Birmingham's most popular tourist and event destinations.
Proposals were revealed to revamp the grade II*-listed Birmingham Botanical Gardens in Edgbaston which is home to more than 10,000 botanic species.
The "urgent and extensive restoration" was desperately needed, chief executive Sara Blair-Manning said in September, as the site's future is considered 'at risk' by government body Historic England.
The 15-acre site is home to heritage assets, including four Victorian glasshouses, which will be restored to reflect their original form and adapted to serve contemporary horticultural needs.
The project will provide a low-carbon, sympathetic reinterpretation of the existing gardens and structure and will deliver a long-term sustainable future for the attraction.
A £2 million grant was awarded to the project by the Julia Rausing Trust in December.
Completing our round up of quarter three is Birmingham's Bull Ring Indoor Market and the news that landlord Hammerson lodged new plans for the city centre site.
The property group, which co-owns and manages the neighbouring Bullring shopping centre, wants to
The redevelopment could provide up to 745 apartments or up to 1,544 student bedrooms, or a combination of these, along with commercial uses.
Hammerson argues the 'Edgbaston Street Gardens' project will provide much-needed, city centre homes if approved but market traders have expressed fears over their future due to a lack of alternative locations in the immediate term.
The neighbouring Smithfield project will have space for an indoor market but it could be several years before this is ready for traders.
