New fire safety rules delay city redevelopment
Elia LoupasakiAT A GLANCE
- Plans to redevelop Coventry city centre have been delayed due to new fire safety rules
- Some buildings will have to be redesigned to include at least two stairwells
- Project applications will now be sent off at the end of the year
- Coventry City Council said "inflation challenges" had also affected the scheme
Plans to redevelop Coventry city centre have been delayed due to new fire safety rules.
Regulations introduced in July now require all new buildings more than 18m (59ft) high to have at least two stairwells.
Some buildings involved in the £450m project will have to be redesigned to fit the regulations.
Applications for the project were going to be submitted in summer 2023 but will now be sent off at the end of the year.
The scheme had also been affected by "inflation challenges", but was "still on track", Coventry City Council said.
Developers were making changes which would lead to a "reserved matters planning application early next year", the authority added.
Around 1,500 homes will be created by the project along with new shops, leisure and public spaces.
It will replace buildings at the City Arcade, Bull Yard, Hertford Street and Shelton Square.
The delay means that the buildings can stay open until next year, including the LTB showrooms which runs within the old Litten Tree pub.
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