EDITOR ’ S CHOICE
RIBA ’ s renowned competitions are aimed at delivering some of the most inspirational and outstanding designs .
“ We ’ re teaming up with RIBA to ensure that the St George ’ s neighbourhood in Wolverhampton can be held up as a best in class example of how to do creative , brownfield regeneration right in a way that delivers social value . We want the practices to come up with something that both inspires and excites , but is a deliverable design that the city can get behind .”
A leading architect will be appointed to oversee the competition soon , with RIBA and Capital & Centric assembling a panel of experts to judge the applications . Four practices will be shortlisted from the initial applications , who will each get eight weeks to design their vision , with input from the panel .
Capital & Centric also plan to showcase the finalists ’ designs at a local event , where the city ’ s residents will be able to have their say on what grabs their eye . The winning design will form the basis of the St George ’ s masterplan , with planning applications to follow later this year .
City of Wolverhampton Council Leader , Councillor Stephen Simkins , said : “ The last time we worked with partners on a design competition it resulted in the delivery of the iconic i9 office building – home to the Government ’ s Department for Levelling Up , Housing and Communities .
“ We now want the St George ’ s scheme to become the design and quality benchmark for future developments in the city and I expect to see a high standard of entries for this game-changing opportunity .
“ As part of our ambitious regeneration plans , St George ’ s can provide an inclusive , safe and sustainable new district that will generate new opportunities and jobs , bring underutilised assets back into community use and , importantly , deliver much needed new homes in Wolverhampton city centre .
“ We ’ re also excited that Capital & Centric will bring further social value to the city through Regeneration Brainery . This programme is aimed at 14 to 21-yearolds and is designed to inspire them to consider careers within property and regeneration , enhancing social mobility and making the industry more representative of society . Projects like St George ’ s offer the perfect opportunity for young people to experience regeneration in action on their doorstep .”
Capital & Centric ’ s appointment on the site was announced in December by the City of Wolverhampton Council , with the first step to develop a masterplan for the former Sainsbury ’ s supermarket site , with links to the £ 61million City Learning Quarter set to open in 2025 .
St George ’ s is one of a number of development opportunities featured in the Wolverhampton Investment Prospectus .
www . capitalandcentric . com
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