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Ice Rink to Rise from the Ashes
Monday 03rd March, 2008
Birmingham will no longer be the only major city in the UK without its own permanent ice-rink after Birmingham City Council approved a planning application for a new ice rink.
Planet Ice on Pershore Street, in the City's Chinese Quarter, was wrecked by a blaze in 2003 and a derelict, fire-damaged building has remained ever since. But with the application for a new skating venue plus 231 apartments receiving the green light from the City Council, work on the £25 million project can now begin. Louise Brooke-Smith, director of planning consultancy CSJ Brooke-Smith, said securing consent hadn't been easy but it was wonderful news for Birmingham:
"Previous applications were refused because of concerns for people living in the new residential units to sit above the ice rink, being troubled by noise from the Wholesale Market next door. We've overcome those worries with a revised design for the scheme. In the light of this, the application was supported by Officers and now has been endorsed by the Planning Committee."
"Although Birmingham has had temporary Christmas ice rinks at Millennium Point and Centenary Square for the past couple of years, it's not the same thing. This is an important addition to the city's leisure offering."
As well as an ice rink and apartments, the new development will also include shops, bars and restaurants and will be an important addition to the new development emerging in Digbeth.