Hanging Gardens-inspired CLT residential development proposed for Birmingham

Two 25-story staggered towers sitting atop a plinth make up the design concept for Garden Hill, a Hanging Gardens of Babylon-inspired residential development in Birmingham, England’s second largest city.

Each 25-story tower will be covered in both public and private terraces from top to bottom. The buildings’ unique cascading form (the apexes are reduced to cut down their bulk) allows for the terraces and a public park to exist on top of the plinth. The southern tower’s terraces will be exposed to morning and early afternoon sun while the northern tower’s terraces will receive afternoon and evening sun.

The shared atrium will have plenty of natural daylight and will also be naturally ventilated. Solar panels will help to offset the building’s energy requirements

To further the sustainability of the project, the structure will be made entirely out of CLT as opposed to steel or concrete.

Rendering courtesy of Architects of Invention.

500 small residential units will be spread across the two tower project. 60% of the units will be one-bedroom apartments measuring between about 430 sf and 540 sf. The other 40% will have two bedrooms and provide between 680 sf and 810 sf. 120 to 200 parking spots will also be included.

While the units are small, the building provides large shared facilities for communal living and working. These facilities include music recording studios and small rental units for startups. Ground floor retail is planned on High Street Bordesley. The Garden Hill site is located in Digbeth, a ten-minute walk from the City Center.

Architects of Invention is the architect for the project, which is estimated to cost about $90 million.