May 2021
May 2021: Approval granted for the southern section of the Athletes’ Route
In January 2021, we submitted a reserved matters planning application to Birmingham City Council to seek approval for the southern section of the Athletes’ Route. The proposals were approved by Birmingham City Council on 13 May 2021. Construction works will begin in June 2021, and are anticipated to be completed in November 2021.
Before and during the Commonwealth Games, the southern section of the Athletes’ Route will be used to; accommodate construction traffic, provide a second access to the temporary Transport Mall required for the Games, and to drop-off competing athletes. During this time, the Athletes’ Route will be a 7 metre wide road composed partly of stone, and partly of tarmac.
Following the Games, part of the Route will be converted into a 4 metre wide pedestrian and cycle route, with a bound gravel surface. This will provide a long-term accessible route between Church Road and the Stadium, for the benefit of the local community. The remainder of the Route will be retained as a 7 metre wide tarmac road, to facilitate future use of the site for parking for major events. However, vehicle access along the Route will be controlled by a lockable barrier, as per the current arrangement.
Should you have any questions about the scheme, do not hesitate to contact Jade Tilley, Stakeholder and Public Liaison Manager for the Alexander Stadium Redevelopment via email.
May 2021: Construction update
- Perry Park / North of GMAC and HP Centre: Construction of the retaining wall and the drainage and duct work in the throwers field has been completed. Installation of the throwers field itself has also commenced and will be ongoing until April 2022. Soil has been spread across the field and grass seeds will be sowed in April 2021, subject to favourable weather conditions. Following this, the landscaping works around the perimeter are due to commence in May 2021 and be ongoing until early 2022.
- New West Stand and main track: Installation of the steel frame, pre-cast terracing (concrete seat support) and metal decking for the new West Stand has been completed as planned. Installation of the West Stand roof and curtain walling (glass panels on the outside of the building) has commenced and will be ongoing until summer 2021. The new West Stand is now at internal fit out stage, which includes partitions, mechanical and electric elements and glazing works, all of which have commenced. Construction of the basic structure of the North and South stadium seating berms (raised banks to support the seating areas) has commenced and will be ongoing until summer 2021, with the remaining works being completed by April 2022. Ground preparation works for the main running track have been completed and the drainage and duct works have commenced and will be ongoing until August 2021. Following this, the final stages of the track formation will begin and will be ongoing until April 2022.
- North of the existing East Stand: Demolition of the existing East Stand link bridges (those which previously connected the East Stand to the former Nelson and Knowles stands) has been completed. The installation of the retaining walls, stairs, gently sloping pathway (between the East Stand car park and East Stand and Northern Plaza levels) and new link bridges (between the East Stand and North and South concourse areas) has commenced and will be ongoing until April 2022.
May 2021: Temporary car parking arrangements for the Back Straight Stand (East Stand)
As part of the Alexander Stadium Redevelopment, we will be remodelling the Back Straight Stand (East Stand) car park, commencing on 17 May 2021. To minimise the impact of this on those using the Back Straight Stand accommodation, we will be providing alternative, temporary parking arrangements for both tenants and visitors to the Fitness Gym.
This temporary arrangement provides a number of spaces within the existing High Performance Centre (HPC) car park which will be accessed via Stadium Way. A number of accessible spaces (blue badge holders only) will be retained adjacent to the Back Straight Stand.
The downloadable notification letter has full details of the temporary car parking arrangements and directions for both pedestrians and vehicles.
These works are scheduled to complete in September 2021, but as the new car park will still form part of the wider construction site, in the interests of safety, we may seek to defer opening until after this date, and will keep stakeholders updated on this matter.
