Planning consent has been granted for a 12,626 sq ft mixed-use restaurant and office building at IM Properties’ Mell Square shopping centre in Solihull town centre.
Two units on the corner of High Street and Drury Lane, formerly occupied by travel agent Thomas Cook and Johnson’s Dry Cleaners, will be demolished to make way for a brand new four-storey building.
IM Properties is currently under offer with a restaurant operator to take the prominent ground floor space, which will have three floors of Grade A offices above.
Rob Hemus, Asset Manager at IM Properties, said: “This is a prominent location right on the corner of High Street and Drury Lane, which will act as an outstanding statement building in a key location, creating another gateway to Mell Square. The scheme will provide a greater vibrancy and vitality to Mell Square and the town centre as a whole.
“We believe this will act as a catalyst for our future ambitions for Mell Square, improving the overall tenant mix, flow of consumers, increased footfall and more dwell time. Ultimately this will help to enhance Solihull Town Centre’s existing offering and improve the public enjoyment and evening economy of the town centre.”
Warwickshire-based IM Properties – one of the UK’s largest privately-owned property investment and development groups – acquired the 747,000 sq ft development from Aviva for £44 million in 2013.
Since then, IM Properties has also purchased other adjacent property holdings to further enhance its commitment and control of Mell Square. The overall ownership currently includes 101 retail units, 57 apartments, four office buildings and parking for 252 cars.
Rob Hemus said: “Mell Square is a significant asset both for IM Properties and for Solihull and our aspiration is to deliver a stronger mixed-use destination that will ultimately incorporate high quality retail, leisure, commercial and residential space, to suit the requirements of both today and for the future.”
Demolition work on the two current units is set to take place this autumn, with the building completed and ready for occupation by September 2016.