Knowle Place revamp of Solihull 'shopping village' drags on with further delay

Planners have voiced frustration at lengthy delays to plans to regenerate a Solihull shopping precinct. Plans to revamp the centre in St John's Way, Knowle, including housing, a spacious public concourse, a prominent arched entrance, sheltered seating and even a water feature, were first revealed in 2021.

But despite Knowle Place gaining planning permission in November 2022, and residents moving out, there has been little change at the site. A revised scheme from developers Mercia Real Estate went before the latest meeting of the planning committee on May 15.

In the public speaking section Knowle councillor Dave Pinwell said he presented a petition - stressing concerns the area was being allowed to deteriorate and become an eyesore - to the council last year. “It gained a total of 1,705 - approximately 25 per cent of Knowle’s electorate,” Coun Pinwell said.

READ MORE: New twist in saga of delayed major revamp of Solihull 'shopping village'

“To attract such a level of support from the community there must be a significant problem. The volume and appearance of the empty retail units, many of which are part of the St John’s Way property, is one of the worst in the West Midlands.”

Officers told councillors a Section 106 agreement - a legally-binding obligation between the council and the developers - was never signed. This has been a key stumbling block holding up progress. New terms were proposed with officers writing in their report: “The affordable housing payment of £427,363, to be secured through the section 106, is necessary to make the proposed development acceptable in planning terms. The trigger point for payment would be on 50 per cent of the occupancy of the relevant housing part of the scheme.”

In the debate committee chairman Coun Bob Grinsell said: “I was chair of this committee three years ago. “I’m disappointed the applicant hasn’t entered into the agreement put forward at that point in time. It (the centre) is in a very sad state of repair. It should be a thriving village, currently it's not.”

Coun Martin McCarthy said: “I’m quite concerned about this. In the 18 months since we set that condition (signing the section 106) there hasn’t been an agreement.

"It doesn’t give me confidence for the future.” Coun Mark Wilson said he had concerns about the economic viability of the scheme adding: “We know there are economic issues across the board - we want the sustainability of a local centre.”

Officers reassured councillors the developers would sign under the new terms having negotiated down from Mercia’s original position for the trigger point to be 100 per cent occupancy. But councillors voted to defer for officers to re-enter negotiations to see if the trigger point could be lowered from 50 per cent.

Committee members also voted it did not need to return to the committee after negotiations - deferring powers of approval to senior members of the committee. Coun Grinsell added this was needed so the matter could progress “as quickly as possible”.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Service after the meeting, held at the Civic Suite on Wednesday, (May 15), Knowle councillor Edward Fitter said: “There still hasn’t been answers for residents living there.

“I do believe the developer will sign the section 106 now. Knowle is so beautiful - it is being let down by St John’s centre.”

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