CITY LIVING RESHAPED Octagon is not just a first for Birmingham, but will be unique in the UK and beyond. Offering a mix of 346 spacious new Build to Rent (BtR) homes designed to excel in every way, we want to build the first pure residential octagonal high rise building in the world. CONTENTS Introduction 03 Planning History 06 Site Location 12 Octagon 16 Key Facts 22 The Architecture 24 Internal Design 28 One Bedroom Home 34 Two Bedroom Home 35 Three Bedroom Home 36 Ground Floor Uses 38 The Central Core & Cladding 42 Market Demand 44 Delivering Octagon 46 The Architects 48 INTRODUCING RESIDENTIAL TO PARADISE Following the Octagon online public consultation process held from 5 – 26th May 2020, we are now processing the many comments we received which will help inform the planning application we submit to Birmingham City Council this summer. If Birmingham City Council subsequently approves our plans, the hope will be for work on Octagon to begin during 2021 and complete in 2024. 02 / Octagon Birmingham 03 Outline planning permission was We are working as part of a public Paradise is the £700 million obtained back in 2013 and detailed private sector Joint Venture (JV) with transformation at the very heart applications are now being progressed Birmingham City Council, the LEP and on a phase by phase basis. Federated Hermes, a global investment management company, to bring of Birmingham attracting new The company managing the development forward up to 2 million sq ft of new at Paradise is Argent, who originally development in the heart of the city. businesses, jobs and visitors to the city. developed Brindleyplace in Birmingham, Piccadilly Gardens in Manchester Our aim is to create a whole new part and King’s Cross in London. of Birmingham by designing buildings that are both desirable and inspiring. We are very experienced at bringing forward large, mixed use schemes with both commercial and residential elements. View across Chamberlain Square We are now working with Glenn Howells Architects to bring a true octagonal-shaped residential skyscraper – a world first – to the city. 04 / Octagon Birmingham 05 PLANNING HISTORY The first phase of Paradise Two Chamberlain Square DLA Piper will relocate to the has already been delivered and top two floors in late 2020. includes new public spaces as Award winning wine bar and restaurant Vinoteca will open at the front of the well as our first two buildings. building overlooking Chamberlain Square. One Chamberlain Square PwC opened its largest UK regional office in January 2020, home to more than 2,000 employees. Indian eatery Dishoom is set to open on the ground floor later this year. 06 / Octagon Birmingham 07 The second phase of development has now started with our next office building, One Centenary Way, set to complete in 2023. This will bring a further 280,000 sq ft of commercial space to the city as well We will also be bringing forward as new retail and leisure units. a new 22-storey hotel, which is earmarked to complete in the second phase, together with Western Terrace - a new piece of public realm. There will be another new commercial building, Three Chamberlain Square, built next to the Town Hall and Paradise Street, along with a new public space, Ratcliff Square. Hotel Western Terrace One Centenary Way 08 / Octagon Birmingham 09 In order to accommodate the Octagon Masterplan Changes building at Paradise, a change to the approved masterplan is proposed. Octagon will replace one of the ten commercial buildings set out in the Paradise masterplan. The addition of residential will help to complete the mix at Paradise and add life to the development. This Build to Rent (BtR) building will be built specifically for renters with all homes owned and managed by one landlord. The building adheres to the main masterplan principles of connecting the city and restoring and enhancing the civic setting at the heart of the Birmingham. 10 / Octagon Birmingham 11 SITE LOCATION A new planning application is being prepared to submit to Birmingham City Council this summer, to introduce a OCTAGON residential element to Paradise as part of phase three which will benefit from a new public square, Congreve Square, as well as up to four further commercial buildings. B Octagon will front onto Summer Row at the very apex of the overall Paradise site. I Congreve Instantly recognisable and marking the Square heart of the city, Octagon will stand tall and proud and be a signpost for C Chamberlain Birmingham, making the most of its H Square location on the Birmingham ridge – a line of higher ground that stretches from Snow Hill to Five Ways along Colmore Row and Broad Street. G The building’s commitment to world class design reflects its proximity to F the nearby Jewellery Quarter with its workshops, both old and new, and Hotel historic role in the industrial revolution. Centenary Square Octagon will offer world class homes for its residents with amazing space, views and advanced safety features in an overall environment of excellence. 12 / Octagon Birmingham 13 VICTORIA SQ. CHAMBERLAIN SQ. CENTENARY SQ. 14 / Octagon Birmingham 15 A WORLD FIRST ON THE BIRMINGHAM SKYLINE We want to build a new 49 storey tower and the first pure residential octagonal high rise building in the world. Octagon will rise to a height of 155 metres The warm tone of the building reflects (or 292 metres above sea level) and the nearby historic city landmarks offer unrivalled views and never-seen- such as the Council House, Birmingham before cityscapes across Birmingham. Museum & Art Gallery and Alpha Tower. The building’s frame is punctuated with Taller than the BT Tower, Octagon will large 10m wide horizontal windows house 346 new homes offering a mix finished in a dark bronze metal to of one, two and three bedroom options complement the building’s soft tone. and incorporate a number of affordable homes, and will also include communal On the ground floor will be a mix space and resident amenities both at the of uses such as a gym, cycle hub, entrance and at the top of the building. resident’s lounge and storage as well as a reception area and café. It is a world class, world first structure – and a building everyone Subject to planning approval, work in the city can be proud of. on Octagon could start on site in 2021 and be finished by 2024. 16 / Octagon Birmingham 17 Octagonal buildings are relatively uncommon, helping to make them instantly recognisable. A pure residential octagonal high rise building – with eight equal façades – has never been built before anywhere in the world. Other octagonal buildings do exist, as shown opposite, but do not have eight equal sides (they have four sides of MLC Centre 383 Madison Avenue equal width and the other four sides Sydney New York are of a different equal width) and are therefore not ‘pure’ octagonal buildings. → → → 80 Collins Street Melbourne 18 / Octagon Birmingham 19 RESHAPING CITY CENTRE LIVING 20 / Octagon Birmingham 21 Key Facts 170 x one bedroom homes (57 m2) 168 x two bedroom homes (78 m2) 8 x three bedroom homes (97-117 m2) plant 2floors 346new homes 813m equal sided pure 155metres tall (3 metres 49storeys above ground octagonal shape taller than the BT Tower) residential44 floors 360º 292metres above sea level due to façade 1home per location on the Birmingham ridge – 13m façade the highest part of the city centre 15,000 sq ft of ground and first floor communal and ancillary spaces plant1 floor 10wide horizontal windowsm per passenger3 lifts 6m4 internalx corridors home with openable sections and 1 staircase linking from the central lift entrance2 and lobby to each quadrant amenity floors 22 / Octagon Birmingham 23 From the outset, the relationship of this building with other city landmarks has been considered THE and the complexity of the site’s location has allowed for a uniquely shaped building. A building that reflects the impact ARCHITECTURE of landmarks such as the listed modernist designs of the Rotunda and Alpha Tower with a simple, elegant architectural language. In terms of space, views, amenities and location, we believe Octagon will excel in every possible way. Rotunda OCTAGON ROTUNDA ALPHA Alpha Tower 24 / Octagon Birmingham 25 The Octagon shape perfectly aligns with the site’s geometry and the evolving Paradise masterplan and sits at the convergence of many of the city’s main public squares at the heart of the city. Jewellery Quarter Its 360 degree design openly This, together with the location within addresses each part of the city Paradise, will give residents connections and the warm cladding and dark to everything the city has to offer. bronze detailing complement the Some parking will be available in the surrounding civic landmarks. new Paradise underground car park Amenities on the ground floor of the although overall the scheme will building will bring life and activity support public transport options as to the street frontages as well as much as possible, whether it is bus, convenience and wellbeing style rail, tram, or pedestrian routes. support for the residents. Centenary Square Centenary Way Great Charles Street 26 / Octagon Birmingham 27 The 346 new homes in Octagon will INTERNAL be some of the most distinctive DESIGN ever built in this country. 28 / Octagon Birmingham 29 As well as light and bright one and two Each home will have its own segment, The petal shaped homes will bedroom homes, there will also be a with storage and bathroom facilities number of spacious three bedroom on the inner edge to maximise the be significantly larger and homes towards the top of the building.