Leisure quarter plan will be ‘major step forward’

Councillor Patrick Harley, leader of Dudley Council, said Hush Property Developments' plans for the Stone Street Square area of the town would bring a major boost to the area.

The company has agreed to buy the former Dudley Museum & Art Gallery on the corner of Priory Street and St James's Road, the vacant Old Glasshouse restaurant in Stone Street and the adjoining office block currently used by the Dudley Centre for Equality and Diversity.

Subject to planning, the developer will transform the museum, which was built in 1883, into a hospitality and leisure complex offering a food-and-drink court, indoor cricket, escape rooms, mini golf, a laser-tag venue and inflatable entertainment.

The company, which has expertise in the redevelopment of historical buildings, will focus on restoring and highlighting its key period features.

Councillor Harley said the new scheme would complement the recently opened Brookes Bistro at the former Dudley Crown Court opposite.

"This collaboration heralds a major step forward in our vision for Dudley’s night-time and hospitality offer," said Councillor Harley.

"The businesses will play a key role in our work to revitalise Dudley’s local economy, offering night-time activities and accommodation to people in the town, and will see significant investment in one of our most prized and historic buildings.

"Last year Dudley Council also opened Brookes Bistro at The Town Hall, which has kick-started Dudley’s night-time resurgence."

Hayley Andrews, chief executive of Hush Property Developments, said: "We are investing today for a better tomorrow, and we see a huge potential in Dudley town, having actively invested here for over a decade.

"Born and bred in the Black Country, we are passionate about regeneration and breathing life back into our historic towns and buildings.

"Dudley is steeped in history and rich in heritage, with the most beautiful buildings, and it is our mission to restore and evolve the area one project at a time.

"The former art gallery and museum is a beautiful grade II listed building dating back to the late 1800s that we have admired and visited many times over the years. We are delighted to have the opportunity to breathe new life into it, while sympathetically restoring and exposing all of the original features and elegance."

Mrs Andrews' husband Paul, a co-director of the company, said the museum building had a number of interesting interior features which had been concealed for many years.

"Hayley and I grew up in Tipton, and we are very committed to the area," he said.