The New Birmingham c. 1964

Project 1

Location	Holloway Head, Suffolk St, Gough St
1964 Status	Proposed
2014 Status	Partially as planned

The negotiations for this site had just fallen through in 1964 but the plan, "partly for use as a multi-storey car park", did eventually come to fruition.  The site, in 2014, was occupied by Kensington House, fronting Suffolk Street Queensway and containing the local branch of the Passport Office.  Behind it lay the Ellis Street car park.  Both were finished in bare concrete, although Kensington House did have some decorative patterns applied and appeared to be of a modular construction similar to the Nat West tower on Colmore Row.  Although not part of the 100 projects, it seems someone later thought it was a good idea that there should be some kind of symmetry around Holloway Circus with St James House and another concrete multi-storey providing some balance.



Site of project 1, c.1964.  Photo from the Geoff Thompson Archive.




Kensington House, April 2014

Ellis St Car Park, Feb 2006

St James House, April 2014

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