Birmingham has become used to misconceptions. Anyone who visited in years gone by came away with a set of impressions which might have boiled down to: friendly people, ugly city. Returning after a gap of 15 years, I found the friendliness unchanged. A taxi driver hearing of the length between visits said: "Welcome back". The surprise was how much the landscape has changed.
All across the UK, the past 10 years have seen major urban regeneration in cities. A trend for loft-house living, combined with a recognition that suburban living and lengthy commuting might not be popular with a new generation of workers, coincided with the regeneration of old buildings – such as warehouses and aged office blocks – and the opening up of previously unpromising locations for housing. Most astonishingly, canals, once avoided, are now being targeted for waterside developments. As a result, new life has come to many UK cities: Newcastle, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester have all had their own versions of this success. But Birmingham's must be the most dramatic.
Its problems were among the greatest. The Second World War damage was exacerbated by post-war planning. Quickly-erected concrete buildings, a city centre encircled by roads, and decaying traces of an illustrious industrial past weren't a great platform from which to build an attractive city centre. Roll forward to the 1980s and, if you travelled to Birmingham at all, it was for a large conference or exhibition. There were few reasons to stay after the show.
The scale of the change that has been effected is astonishing. Birmingham was never a city for doing things by halves. Landlocked and in the middle of the country, it owes its "second city" status by virtue of being at the centre of a series of road, rail and canal networks between the great ports of the UK. It built this network so they would come. So when a new city centre was clearly needed, once again, the city built one – its second in half a century.
Philippe Roux-Dessarps is general manager of the Hyatt Regency Birmingham. With previous postings to Tokyo, London and Paris-Vendôme, what did he make of Birmingham?
"I'd worked here briefly on a project in 2000, so I was familiar with the city, but it has changed a lot since 2000," he says.
This change is reflected in the hotel, which this year opened The Amala Spa. "If we had talked about doing a spa in Birmingham 10 years ago, people would have laughed," says Roux-Dessarps. "The environment has changed very dramatically – we are neighbours to Brindleyplace and Harvey Nichols, so it made perfect sense."
Brindleyplace is a big success story. In 1987, Birmingham City Council drew up major regeneration plans for this vacant 26-acre site next to the International Convention Centre (ICC) and the National Indoor Arena (NIA), as part of the significant Broad Street redevelopment. It went through a number of reimaginings, not least because of the recession of the late 1980s and early 1990s. The final plan for development featured a public square, numerous restaurants, shops and bars, 140 homes and over 100,000 square metres of office space.
Brindleyplace is a thriving and animated locale from early morning until late at night, and even into the small hours of the next morning. The eventual developer was Argent Group PLC. The planning of the much-admired architecture was a team effort, says Argent director Gary Taylor.
"Terry Farrell's company and his former director, John Chatwin, did the original masterplan, then Chatwin worked with several young architecture practices. We didn't want a single architectural style to be stamped on Brindleyplace. We wanted a number of young practices to take on major buildings. Together they came up with some masterplan rules, such as the existence of colonnades around the main square and some of the language of the architecture, but interpreted them in their own way. So we have some very classical architecture by Demetri Porphyrios at Three Brindleyplace, for example, through to some very contemporary architecture with the café in the square and the Stanton Williams at Four Brindleyplace. "
The success of the development owes much to the architecture; however, it's the mixed use that the space was put to, including the Sea Life Centre and Ikon Gallery, which helps lure visitors in at the weekends. Restaurants and bars also draw crowds, which then adds atmosphere to the space, making it a prime destination to while away the evening.
"If one company has control of the space, then you can take a view on these things," says Taylor. "In the end, we think it makes good commercial sense. Of course it is the offices that pay the best rent, but what attracts companies such as the Royal Bank of Scotland is what is in-between the buildings. Our experience is that if you charge high rent, you get mainstream users – but if you are bit more flexible, it helps to create the right environment."
What's striking about Birmingham's redevelopment is that it has been planned for so long. "Back in the early 1980s the city was thinking very strategically of changing the economic model away from manufacturing," says Taylor. "The investment in the NEC and the ICC were intended to rebalance the economy towards a service-based economy. Birmingham was well ahead of its time in looking at that and it has paid dividends, particularly with the car industry in the Midlands suffering in the last five years."
Jenny Inglis is city centre director of the Birmingham City Centre Partnership (BCCP), a public and private sector organisation in Birmingham which aims "to create a world class city centre for Birmingham". Funded by Birmingham City Council and by membership from sponsors like Bullring, Mailbox, West Midlands Police as well as major retailers and travel companies, the BCCP manages and promotes the city centre. It also encourages the formation of Business Improvement Districts (BIDs). This is government legislation providing the framework for businesses to have an element of control over how money is spent in their area, though only if they contribute an additional one per cent on their rates bill.
"In the case of the Broad Street BID, the budget of approximately £400,000 per year is spent on making the area safer and cleaner, with the money going on a night-time warden service and extra street cleaning," says Inglis. "Looking at Brindleyplace as an example of how high standards in the public realm can look, it's trying to get that standard out onto the rest of the area."
One problem, however, is that this focus on specific needs for each area or quarter of Birmingham keeps the city segmented.
"We couldn't do one big BID for the whole city centre," says Inglis. "Each area has quite different needs. For the retail area, the priority is around marketing and promotion and trying to get more footfall – and the right sort of footfall."
It is the Birmingham City Centre Partnership's job to promote a coherent approach. "The BCCP joins up the BIDs," says Inglis. "So in five years time, if we have ones for Eastside, the Jewellery Quarter, the retail quarter and so on, there will be three members from each BID on the partnership, with staffing support provided by City Council. The overall vision will be set by BCCP and the BIDs will be operational."
The results so far have been impressive. CACI research shows that Birmingham has moved from 13th to the second most attractive shopping destinations in the UK, after London's West End.
The dependence on exhibition business is clear in the city, not just in the fact that when there is no large conference in town, the city has 2,000 more hotel beds than it needs, but also in the number of lap-dancing clubs, oddly enough. Nevertheless, speaking with Clifford Grauers, for many years the general manager of the Hyatt Regency and now GM for the Great Eastern Hotel in London, much has already been achieved.
"There has been a fantastic switch from manufacturing to more services, and the city has been good at attracting leisure business," Grauers says. "Eight years ago you couldn't keep people in town in the evening, but now there are so many good restaurants – those Michelin-starred restaurants just could not have happened 10 years ago. The conference facilities are unique, and they are beginning to shift the image of the city."
Grauers admits there is still much to do, particularly in changing the view from London. "This city has much more to offer than Leeds or Manchester, but the promotion has lagged behind. There are also infrastructure challenges. The railway is like a bottleneck into the city, and there needs to be a much better road to the airport."
Lorraine Flanagan is marketing and media director for the European Athletics Indoor Championships 2007, which takes place between March 2-4 at the NIA in the city centre. "It will be the most significant major athletics event before 2012, "says Flanagan. "One thousand athletes and officials and 850 media from 50 European countries. In total there will be around 5,000 people staying in the city between four and 10 nights, so we are estimating an economic impact in terms of direct spend of around £3.5 million."
Another major reason for hosting it is the high level of media interest and coverage that comes with staging a championship like this. There is three days' live BBC coverage which is broadcast around the world, with 168 million viewers in Europe alone. Flanagan also points out that with the NIA in the centre of Birmingham, the city is a popular location with the athletes.
"Stadia are often built outside the city centre, but in Birmingham you don't get that Olympic village feel, and after the competition, the athletes are right in the centre of things, which creates a good festival atmosphere.
"As a result, entertainment has been created around the NIA, including a sports park in Centenary Square for schoolchildren and families to have a go at sport and learn about nutrition and exercise, and we are also looking to create an entertainment zone in the Brindleyplace area so it is something for local people to enjoy too. It allows them to play a part of the whole thing – create a festival feel around the arena."
Flanagan says that the president of the IAAF declared that the World Indoor Championships in Birmingham 2003 were the best ever and have been held up as a blueprint for major events since.
"Sebastian Coe has publicly recognised the role Birmingham played in the London 2012 bid by hosting a successful World Indoor Athletics Championship in 2003. It put the UK back on the world stage in terms of having the capability of staging a major event. London 2012 will be drawing on that sort of experience."
The city is also hoping to host some major country teams for the Olympics in 2012, including China. Says Flanagan: "China would be a real coup because of the benefits in other business and economic links with that country."
Right now the process is recruiting 800 volunteers at Birmingham to help with the games. "It's a good way of the community getting involved, and young people get excellent experience for their CV. We're also about to launch a fairly comprehensive school programme because it is important to enthuse young people and encourage them to get involved. Then in the immediate run-up to the championships from January, we'll get the city looking good – with floral displays, for example. We should have quite a few themed events and so on under way so we can provide a warm welcome to visitors."
This focus on international business is clearly vital for the future. Even the most international of Birmingham's hotels, the Hyatt Regency, still has a predominantly national clientele, despite the connections from Birmingham International Airport.
"It's one reason for the spa – we are targeting people within a 70 mile radius," says Philippe Roux-Dessarps. "The airport has good connections throughout Europe, so we ought to have more international customers, but with the NEC, the ICC and Symphony Hall, there's a national market which is sustaining the city. Birmingham doesn't have the reputation it deserves, particularly for international meetings.
"This city is going through many changes. I meet so many people who have building projects under way – if only half happen, it's a great step forward for the city."
This is echoed by Gary Taylor at Argent. "Now that Birmingham is on the map from a property point of view, it's moved from a stage where it was all about making things happen to making sure that those things that do happen improve the city for the long-term. It would be a shame if we looked back in 10 or 15 years time and thought that what went on wasn't for the best."
Making a weekend of it
National Sea Life Centre
In Brindleyplace next to the canals, this is packed most weekends. The centre has an innovative design over several levels (60 displays on four floors), meaning you never know what's coming next. There's plenty that is educational here, as well as a strong focus on conservation and the eco-system of the oceans, but children will focus on the underwater tunnels where sharks swim overhead, the ray pool (Bay of Rays) which allows them to get up close, and the otter sanctuary.
Opening hours Open daily from 10am (excluding Christmas) – last admission at 4pm.
Prices Adult, £13.50; children, £9.50.
Contact sealifeeurope.com, tel +44 (0)121 643 6777.
Think Tank at Millennium Point
If you like the Science Museum in London's South Kensington, be prepared to be blown away by Think Tank. It is a huge place, looking a little white-elephant-like at the moment, and can be approached on foot via a 15-minute walk from the city centre. Once there, the museum is worth a day of your time. Children can play at being a cook in a café, a dentist, a mechanic or an ambulance driver. The heavy industrial machinery, pumping away on the ground floor, is fascinating, as is the giant reconstruction of a human digestive system, following food from one end to the other.
Opening hours Open every day (excluding holidays) from 10am – last admission at 4pm.
Prices Adult, £7.95; children, £5.85.
Contact thinktank.ac, tel +44 (0)121 202 2222.
Cadbury World
A £8 taxi ride out to Bournville, Cadbury World is a perfect stop for children, especially those who have seen Charlie And The Chocolate Factory. Two new attractions – Essence and Purple Planet – have opened as part of a £2 million refurbishment programme and there's an outdoor playground and snack bar, but if you eat all the chocolate that's handed to you as you make your way round, you won't be hungry for the rest of the day.
Opening hours Open seven days a week. Times vary – please visit the website.
Prices Adult, £12.50; child, £9.50.
Contact cadburyworld.co.uk, tel +44 (0)845 450 3599.
Hotels
Radisson SAS
12 Holloway Circus, Queensway, tel +44 (0)121 654 6000, radissonsas.com
A new-build property and immediate landmark – it's been nicknamed the "shower curtain". Full review, Business Traveller, April 2006. Rates from £135 for a standard room.
Malmaison
One Wharfside Street, tel +44 (0)121 246 5000, malmaison.com
In the Mailbox, the Malmaison is a good-value option yet has the internet access, business centres, and meeting rooms to pull in regular business travellers. The combined bar and restaurant is worth visiting even if you are not staying at the hotel, and there's a good- sized spa (and gym). Rates from £130 for a standard room.
Hotel du Vin
Church Street, tel +44 (0)121 200 0600, hotelduvin.com
In the former Birmingham Eye Hospital, this ornate early-Victorian building in the Jewellery Quarter now has 66 bedrooms and suites. Popular with everyone from barristers to pop stars, the hotel has a bistro, spa and gym, and is rather Tardis-like, with many corners you can tuck yourself into with a glass of superior wine. Check out the cellar bar. Rates from £140 for a standard room.
Hyatt Regency
2 Bridge Street, tel +44 (0)121 6431234, hyatt.com
For years it's been the most luxurious high-profile hotel in the city. Linked directly to Birmingham's ICC, the Hyatt is a landmark, and is still one of the favourites for business travellers. Many of the 319 rooms have dramatic views of the city centre, and new this year is The Amala Spa and Club. Rates from £134 for a standard room.
City Inn
1 Brunswick Square, Brindleyplace, tel +44 (0)121 643 1003, cityinn.com
Ideally located next to the ICC, NIA and Symphony Hall in Brindleyplace. The City Inn boasts 238 rooms, a stylish lounge bar, acclaimed modern European cuisine in City Café and two stylish terraces for alfresco dining. Rates from £129 for a standard room.
Top restaurants
Simpsons Restaurant
20 Highfield Road, Edgbaston, tel +44 (0)121 454 3434, simpsonsrestaurant.co.uk
One mile out of town (£4 by taxi), the Michelin-starred Simpsons is in a Georgian Grade II-listed site in Edgbaston, five minutes from Birmingham city centre. The dining room seats 70 people, with a kind of orangery at the rear and a separate bar and lounge area for pre- and post-dinner drinks. The cream and caramel tones, limestone and wood flooring make for a modern and minimalist setting, which still manages to be extremely homely.
Chef and owner Andreas Antona, who originally opened the restaurant at another location, has opened four guestrooms for those who want to make a night of it, which is a real temptation – although since the food is relatively light you may not feel the need to crawl up to bed afterwards. Chef de cuisine Luke Tipping prepares starters such as Salcombe crab cocktail, green apple jelly, apple espuma and crab spring roll (£12.50); and roasted veal sweetbreads, citrus fruits, pain d'éspice and Armagnac sauce (£12.50). Main courses include fillet of sea bass à la blancha, with fennel, onion, red and yellow pepper stew, parmesan gnocchi and lobster sauce (£23); and fillet of Aberdeenshire beef cooked on the bone, with king oyster mushroom, parsley and garlic, madeira sauce, pomme sautée and green salad (£27). For dessert you can choose from pistachio meringue, Valrhona chocolate ice-cream and amaretto crumble; and délice of Valrhona chocolate "amer'' with passion-fruit sorbet (both £7.95).
There is a high-ceilinged and naturally-lit private dining room available (with no hire charge) that seats up to 20 guests.
Prices Lunch £27.50 for three courses, dinner £30 for three courses.
Opening hours Seven days a week. Lunch, 12-2.30pm; dinner 7-10pm.
Jessica's
1 Montague Road, Edgbaston, tel +44 (0)121 455 0999, jessicasrestaurant.co.uk
Jessica's serves French-influenced modern British and changes its menu monthly, sourcing food from top-quality Midland suppliers. Head chef Glynn Purnell is passionate, not just about cooking but about the city. The restaurant is in a residential area a mile from the city centre (there are 10 self-service apartments next door; visit toteluk.com) and there is a small garden and conservatory in the back, with more tables. Purnell is fond of adding quirky twists to his cuisine, such as combining cornflakes and a poached egg yolk with smoked haddock sauce.
Prices Lunch £23.50 for three courses, dinner (three courses à la carte) £32.95. À la carte plus a five- and seven-course tasting menu and a six choice vegetarian menu is also available for lunch or dinner.
Opening hours Lunch Tues-Fri, 12.30-2pm; dinner Tues-Sat, 7-10pm.
Opus
54 Cornwall Street, tel +44 (0)121 200 2323, opusrestaurant.co.uk
This city centre restaurant also has an emphasis on seasonal and local produce, but this time concentrates on modern British cuisine: there's a seafood bar, plus sections from the grill – Canley pork sausages, mash, onion gravy (£10.50); from the sea – wild sea bass, artichoke, potato gnocchi, aubergine caviar (£16.50); and from the land – Jimmy Butler's free range pork collar, polenta "bubble and squeak", parsley cream, £13.
There are two large private rooms, as well as a good bar in the centre of the restaurant.
Prices Two courses £15.50, three courses £17.50.
Opening hours Mon-Fri 12-11pm; Saturday 7-12pm.
Bank
4 Brindley Place, tel +44 (0)121 633 4466, bankrestaurants.com/birmingham
This is part of the Bank restaurant group, which also owns Zinc Bar and Grills in London, Birmingham, Manchester and Glasgow. The Brindleyplace branch is huge, yet fills up in the evenings, and also for Sunday brunch and lunch. There are impressive seasonal offers, and a good wine list to accompany everything from fresh rock oysters to fillet of beef.
Prices £12.50 for two courses, £15 for three courses.
Opening hours Breakfast, Mon-Fri 7.30-11am, weekends 11.30am until around 3pm; Lunch, Mon-Fri 12-3pm; dinner, Mon-Thurs 5.30-11pm, Fri/Sat 5.30-11.30pm, Sun 5-10pm.
