Major new office and restaurant space planned for Birmingham’s Grand Central

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Developer Hammerson has submitted plans to transform the former John Lewis department store at Birmingham’s Grand Central into 200,000 sq ft of offices that will also include a restaurant, bar and food market.

Drum takes its name from the instrument-like design of the building and will have 40,000 sq ft of hospitality space on its ground floor and will also feature a premium grocery offer, gym, wellbeing amenities and an events space.  

The new space will extend the former department store’s atrium through all the four floors of the building to include a sweeping, open, communal entrance.

It will also lead to a newly created rooftop garden lounge, while green walls on each level will give the appearance of the garden spilling back down through the building.

The workspace is expected to accommodate up to 2,000 people and are billed as the best-connected offices in the city. 

“This project is the next step in Hammerson’s vision to transform our Birmingham estate, creating a truly multi-use asset that thrives due to its relevance and diversity,” says Hammerson chief development and asset repositioning officer Harry Badham.

“Drum is an original and highly important evolution of workplaces, built on the principles of connectivity, amenities, and sustainability, and it is crucial we complement it by creating a vibrant public realm that provides new facilities and more choice for office workers and visitors. These proposals will create a new world-class restaurant and leisure hub at this key national interchange and gateway to the UK’s fastest growing city.”