Flats plan revealed for historic West Bromwich site that has moved to Black Country Museum
Flats are set to be built on the site of an historic West Bromwich showroom after it was moved to the Black Country Museum.
Watch more of our videos on ShotsTV.com
and on Freeview 262 or Freely 565
A planning application to build 26 ‘affordable’ flats on the corner of Lombard Street West and West Bromwich High Street, next to the town’s library, has been submitted to Sandwell Council.
The land was home to the town’s crumbling former gas showroom before it was demolished in 2017 with parts of the building, which had been a fixture of West Bromwich High Street for more than 75 years but later described as a ‘blight’ after years of neglect, relocated to the Black Country Living Museum in Dudley.
The application said the new flats would have a 'distinctive modern and contemporary aesthetic' and would be a “striking new addition” to West Bromwich High Street.
The land that housed the former gas showroom was bought by the Black Country Housing Group in 2022. Sandwell Council said it accepted a lower offer of £270,000 to have complete control over tenancies for all the homes planned for the former showroom land. A higher offer of £427,000 for the land was rejected as it would have only offered nomination rights for six homes, the council said.
Last year, the go-ahead was given for the former gas showroom to be rebuilt as part of its 1940s-1960s village. The bad state of the building meant a ‘brick-by-brick’ rebuild was not possible.
The social housing provider was also given permission to build 43 flats on the former Shaftesbury House site – less than 500 metres away in West Bromwich High Street.
The land was once earmarked for a nine-storey block with 66 flats, with Sandwell Council’s planners giving their blessing to the planning application six years ago, but the work never took off. A few years later the council approved plans to build 43 flats on the land before that was scrapped in favour of the new £5 million Central Saint Michael’s Sandwell Science, Engineering and Manufacturing Centre.
A plan to build extra classrooms behind the new multi-million-pound college campus was approved in July.
The state-of-the-art centre offers advanced courses in science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) for students at both Central Saint Michael’s Sixth Form and Sandwell College. The extra classrooms would provide space for 250 students. More than 200 students have already used the college since opening last September. The campus received its official opening in March.
