Gowling WLG to provide legal advice on Arden Cross HS2 interchange site
Law firm Gowling WLG has been appointed by a consortium including two local authorities to advise on the Arden Cross HS2 interchange site, which has been described as one of the UK’s most significant development sites.
The Arden Cross Consortium comprises landowners Birmingham City Council, Packington Estate, Coleshill Estate and Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council.
Adjacent to Birmingham Airport, Birmingham International Railway Station and the NEC, and bounded by the M42, A45 and A452, Arden Cross is the selected location for the HS2 Birmingham Interchange station.
The site is to be developed as a sustainable urban quarter in Solihull, comprising a minimum of 2.65 million square feet of commercial space, 2,000 homes, complementary retail and leisure amenities, extensive public realm and new transport links.
Ben Gray, project director for Arden Cross, said: "Following a highly competitive process, we are confident that we have selected legal advisers with the strength and breadth of skills and experience required to deliver such a complex and large-scale scheme as Arden Cross."
Nisha Jassal, a real estate partner at Gowling WLG who will be leading the project, said: "Arden Cross is one of the most important strategic developments not just for the Midlands but for the UK as a whole. It is tremendously exciting to be involved in this project, helping create a sustainable mixed-use destination of this scale.
"This development will have a huge positive impact on the regional economy and our whole team, which includes lawyers from across the real estate and infrastructure sectors, are all delighted to be able to play their part in making it happen."
The site is a part of UK Central, an economic strategic vision being driven by Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council and fully supported by the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership (GBSLEP), West Midlands Combined Authority and UK Central Government.
The realisation of the overarching vision for the Hub - the first focal point of the UK Central strategy, and home to Arden Cross - will be supported by the Urban Growth Company (UGC), a special purpose delivery vehicle established to lead and develop major infrastructure investment in the area.