Regenerate the brownfield land east of Wolverhampton train station, breathing new life into an old goods yard depot building, supported by affordable build to rent homes and a provision for excellent outdoor amenity spaces.

The site was beset by connectivity issues, spliced in the middle by Birmingham canal, to the north by the railway arches and to a sheer brick retaining wall blocking off the goods depot from the rest of the site as well as the lower level canal.

The goods depot required careful consideration of how to sensitively re-introduce usable space in a deep plan and harness the potential of the external area around the building.

Th site was connected via 3 key installations. A footbridge across Birmingham canal connected the north and south of the site. New vehicular access to the north of the site, connecting the station to the new residential plots overlooking the canal. And a set of wide, sculptural steps carved into the canal retaining wall to provide pedestrian access from the high level goods depot yard, down to the canal.

This new pedestrianised edge to the canal allowed for a continuous route from the station, via the goods depot and over the footbridge out to the Horseley Fields road portion of thesite. A route previously locked by the defensive nature of the existing site.

Residential plots focused scale and massing alongside the canal edge, running perpendicular to allow visual and directional permeability throughout the site. Whilst the goods depot was fully re-imagined as a vibrant tech hub, co-working space with a multi-functional outdoor plaza space for community events, pop-up food and beverage stalls and outdoor cinema nights.