6.8 Gun Quarter
Plain English Version
The Gun Quarter is mainly industrial. However, it does have some shops and businesses around Queensway and Lancaster Circus. Some people are still making and selling guns there, but most connections with the past have been lost. Commercial offices are appearing near the city centre, but most buildings in the Gun Quarter are industrial or warehouses. We want Birmingham to be a global city. At the moment the Gun Quarter does not meet that goal.
The Gun Quarter has lots of buildings that are empty, and buildings that are not being used much. Also they are not very good quality. Jobs in manufacturing are dropping quickly. Not much happens in the Gun Quarter now, even though it is near the city centre.
There is one large area of housing in the north west of the Gun Quarter, which has schools and community facilities. However, it is very close to the declining industrial area. The poor quality of the under-used commercial buildings makes this area feel run down. Walking routes through to the city centre are poor and do not feel safe.
If we make the industrial area smaller, we could make the residential area bigger. This would mean that a larger, mixed community could live there. Like Highgate, the Gun Quarter could be a good example of a family neighbourhood.
One strong point for the Gun Quarter is that the streets are laid out well. If the area is losing its industrial identity, we can re-use the land for other things. (There is more about this in the City Centre Canal Corridor Framework.)
The Gun Quarter is next to the city centre, which means it has land that is quite valuable. We want to make the most of that. The canal has lots of potential too, but at the moment the buildings face away from it. The canal frontage is suitable for homes, offices, leisure and tourism. (There is more about this in the City Centre Canal Corridor Framework.)
We want to get the most out of the Gun Quarter. Therefore we must create better connections to the city centre, particularly across Queensway. Recent improvements to St Chad’s Circus have already made this better, but we could do more. There are also plans to develop Aston, Newton and Lozells, on the other side of the Ring Road. Therefore it needs to be easier to get from the Gun Quarter to these places too. (You can find more about this in the Preferred Option for the Aston, Newtown and Lozells Area Action Plan.)
There are no major plans to develop the Gun Quarter at the moment. But there are plans for nearby areas, including Snow Hill and Lancaster Circus.
Lancaster Circus has lots of empty buildings. It also has buildings that are not being used much. We think this is a good opportunity to develop the area. The Unitary Development Plan recommends that we develop Queensway and Lancaster Circus as commercial areas, as well as towards the city centre and the Fazeley Canal. There are also buildings on Constitution Hill that could be developed eventually. These could be used for a number of things, including housing. Further out, we see that the junction of New John Street and Dartmouth Circus may be suitable for retail warehouses.
A recent study exists of Birmingham’s housing capacity. This shows that we can probably put more housing in the Gun Quarter, along the southern boundary.
Original Document
The Gun Quarter is dominated by industrial uses with some commercial uses around Queensway and Lancaster Circus. The area has links with its traditional roots and there are still gun manufacturers and traders based in the quarter. However, most of the area has long lost its traditional associations. The area has seen the growth of commercial offices adjacent to the city core. The majority of the urban fabric of the area, however, is characterised by industrial and warehouse buildings, which do not relate to Birmingham’s global city ambitions.
There are high levels of vacancies and underuse in the industrial stock of the area and manufacturing employment has declined rapidly. The area now exhibits relatively low activity levels within a stone’s throw of the City Core. The building stock is generally of mediocre quality.
The only exception to the industrial character of this area is a large pocket of housing in the north west area of the quarter. The area contains schools and community facilities but it is very close to the declining industrial area and the poor quality of the underused stock gives the housing area a poor setting. Walking routes through to the city centre are poor and do not appear secure.
A strength of the urban fabric is that it generally follows a traditional street pattern. The City Centre Canal Corridor Framework recognises this strength as presenting an opportunity to introduce other land uses if the industrial uses cease to operate in this area.
The presence of the existing residential area with its school and open spaces provides a basis on which to build a larger mixed residential community, if the existing area of industry is reduced in size, like Highgate this could be developed as an exemplar family neighbourhood.
The proximity of the Gun Quarter to the city centre presents an opportunity to maximise the land values at this location. The canal frontage along the southern boundary of the quarter presents a further opportunity. Buildings currently turn their back to the canal. The canal frontage is suitable for domestic scale mixed residential, office, leisure/tourism uses. Indeed, this mix of uses is encouraged within the Canal Corridor SPG.
The connections with the city centre need to be made more accessible, particularly across Queensway to maximise the potential of this quarter. Already recent improvements to St Chad’s Circus have made the city centre more accessible from the Gun Quarter. Account should also be taken of the need for physical connections with the potential mixed-use proposals on the opposite side of the Ring Road in the emerging draft Preferred Option for the Aston, Newtown and Lozells Area Action Plan (also a Development Plan Document).
While there are no significant developments taking place within the Gun Quarter, there are a number of developments in the pipeline that are in close proximity. These include proposals at Snow Hill and Lancaster Circus.
Lancaster Circus is seen as an area of major opportunity with vacant under utilised sites. The UDP encourages commercial development around Queensway and Lancaster Circus, with further opportunities existing towards Birmingham and the Fazeley Canal. In the longer term retail and wholesale premises fronting Constitution Hill may be suitable for mixed use development including housing. Further out the junction of New John Street, Dartmouth Circus seen as suitable for retail warehousing.
A recent study of Birmingham’s Housing Capacity suggests that there is more potential for residential development concentrated along the southern boundary of the Gun Quarter.