Work starts on £4m Wolverhampton supermarket and apartment complex plan
These images show work progressing on the long-awaited development of the Charles Clark site in Chapel Ash.
The £4m project will see luxury apartments and a supermarket built on the site, which has been empty for 15 years.
The first phase of the project is now under way and will see 12 apartments worth around £100,000 each created above the former car showroom. It will take three to four months.
Following that a second phase will see 24 more apartments built, bringing the final cost to £4m.
Site owner Kultar Dale said he was pleased work had finally begun.
He said: "This should have been done years and years ago. It needed to happen.
"Chapel Ash is an up and coming area. The site's got real potential.
"The apartments will be of an excellent standard and the first phase should take three to four months.
"We're trying to connect with local people and support local people."
It is thought a national chain will take over the former showroom, with four extra retail units going to local businesses thought to include solicitors and estate agents.
The development has previously been welcomed by nearby business owners and Wolverhampton MP Pat McFadden, who called it 'very good news' for the city.
Wolverhampton City Council granted approval of the site to be developed earlier this year.
Plans included converting the first and second floor offices into homes and the showroom into a retail unit.
There was also an application to re-clad the building which has long been a source of embarrassment for council chiefs, standing on a gateway into the city centre.
Charles Clark was established in Chapel Ash in 1950 when its showroom was opened by the then, Mayor of Wolverhampton.
In the mid 1960s, it moved to the current site off Merridale Street.
Other recent developments in and around Chapel Ash include a new £60m Sainsbury's store off Ring Road St Mark's, which opened earlier this year.
And this week Marston's announced it would be redeveloping its Chapel Ash headquarters.
Do you think these developments will benefit the area? Leave your comments below.
