Hungary’s Cordia Completes Renovation of Listed Building in Birmingham
The Bank, a heritage building in Birmingham in the United Kingdom.
The leading Hungarian residential developer, Cordia, the residential arm of the Futureal Group, has completed the renovation of The Bank. A heritage building, it is located in the Jewellery Quarter of Birmingham in the West Midlands area of the United Kingdom.
Cordia formed a joint venture with the Birmingham-based Blackswan for the project. In a demonstration of growing ambitions, Hungarian developers and investors are increasingly undertaking projects in other parts of Central and Western Europe. Cordia is one of the largest residential developers in Central Europe with a presence in the mid-and mid-to-high segments of the for-sale residential market in Hungary, Poland, Romania and the United Kingdom. It is also undertaking pilot projects in Spain.
“The Bank is an important project in Cordia’s local subsidiary, Cordia Blackswan’s urban regeneration vision for Great Hampton Street. The developer has restored the former Lloyds TSB Bank landmark building, offering seven high-quality commercial spaces for mixed uses, including office and retail. The Bank is located next to Cordia’s other local residential project, The Gothic, the first phase of which was delivered last autumn,” said Cordia Blackswan in a press statement.
Cordia Blackswan is also working on the neighboring site with the development of the 148-apartment The Lamp Works, where 97% of the demolished assets were reused.
With sustainability at the forefront of the design, the developer has improved The Bank’s energy performance rating from “D” to “B.” This is while retaining and repairing a large portion of the building’s original and lost features to the standing and quality of design prior to its 1980s reconfiguration works, including the buff terracotta façade and large span sash windows, which contain Gothic, Renaissance and Dutch gable motifs, Cordia Blackswan added.
Authentic Features
“Reaching completion on The Bank signifies the start of Cordia Blackswan’s commercial offering and reinforces our overall vision for Great Hampton Street. From the banking hall to the Cordia Blackswan office, each space within The Bank has been finished to the highest standard, with authentic features restored throughout; that’s what makes the building such a unique place to work,” says András Kárpáti, deputy CEO at Cordia Blackswan.
The JV currently has 11 active developments across the United Kingdom’s West Midlands area, nine of which are located in and around Great Hampton Street.
“Urban regeneration is at the forefront of Cordia Group’s mission, with many large-scale projects delivered or in the pipeline including one that is described as one of Central Europe’s largest regeneration projects, Corvin Quarter. Another Budapest project is the soon-to-be-launched Marina City on a 10 hectare brownfield site on the bank of the Danube in District XIII, close to Váci út,” comments Cordia.
Back in the United Kingdom, Cordia Blackswan has a pipeline comprising more than 1,800 homes, as well as 360,000 square feet (about 33,445 sqm) for commercial use across the West Midlands. It is actively looking for new sites across the region.
This article was first published in the Budapest Business Journal print issue of April 21, 2023.
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