Further to the email notifying invitees to the April Community Forum meeting of the launch of this consultation, please note that the consultation period for the HS2 Draft Scope and Methodology for the HS2 Environmental Impact Assessment will end at 12pm on Wednesday 30 May.

The document can be found on the HS2 consultation website here. Hard copies of the consultation draft are available on request.

Responses can be submitted by email to: HS2EIASMConsultation@hs2.gsi.gov.uk or by post to:

EIA Draft Scope and Methodology Consultation
HS2 Ltd, Eland House
2nd Floor, Bressenden Place
London
SW1E 5DU

When responding, please indicate if you would like your response to be treated as confidential. It will be assumed that your response should not be treated as confidential unless you indicate otherwise. The conditions regarding confidentiality and data protection can be found on the consultation website.

High Speed Two (HS2) Ltd

Mercat Bar and Grill
The talking ‘here for the beer’ tankard has been covered up and I’m sure the insides have also been revamped at Number 25 Bradford Street. By the looks of things, there are a few deals to be had as well!
If you remember what this bar was called before Mercat, or if you’ve sampled the delights – get in touch and let us know by commenting on this post or by email.

Star Coffee
Making use of the empty building on the corner with Rea Street, we think this new coffee shop/cafe is linked to the Somali youth centre further down Rea Street. I’ve been inside and spoken to the staff who are thoroughly lovely, but if you’d like to tell us more, again please get in touch!

Chinese Supermarket
Although the refurbishment process has been taking quite a while, the top of Bradford Street may soon be the proud owner of a shiny new supermarket. DiG will be sure to let you know as soon as this happens!

HS2 route in Digbeth could mean ‘bodies are exhumed’

Bodies from an old burial ground in Birmingham might have to be exhumed as part of plans for the government’s high-speed rail network.

Photo: BBC News

Under the plans, the Curzon Street terminal would be built on Park Street in Digbeth, a 19th Century graveyard. There are 25 gravestones on the site which was last used as a burial ground in the late 1800s and is currently used as a recreational space.

Mike Hodder from the city council said: “Every effort would have to be made to contact relatives and inform them of the disturbance.”

A statement from HS2 said: “As part of our work on designing the new station we are meeting with the council, community representatives and other interested parties to examine how to keep disruption to sites such as the historic Park Street burial ground to a minimum.”

Mr Hodder, Birmingham City Council’s planning archaeologist, said: “The remains would have to be removed and archaeologists would have to contact any living relatives, it would be similar to what happened when the Bull Ring was built.”

Is it just me or is HS2 seeming more and more like a whole load of effort for not much journey time saving? HS2 have, however, been keeping to their word to meet with the community, and sent the below letter to Digbeth Residents Association.

Digbeth-based architect and supporter of DRA, Joe Holyoak, attended the first HS2 Community Forum. If you are interested in attending the next, make sure to email community.forums@hs2.gsi.gov.uk

HS2 Community Forums

As a result of the event, MADE were able to compose the following response to the Eastside Masterplan.

Thanks to Digbeth Resident Lisa Zdravkovic for sharing this document.

MADE Eastside Masterplan Response

Part of the proposal includes relaxed planning restrictions regarding the change of use of existing buildings. This is known as a Local Developlment Order, or LDO for short.

Digbeth Residents Association was recently given the opportunity to respond to these plans; our full comments are presented in the document below.

If you would like to make any additional comments, please feel free to do so on this post, or email them to contact@mydigbeth.co.uk.

As the body representing those living in Digbeth, DRA gave the following response to the plans. If anyone would like to add any comments, thoughts or feedback, please feel free to comment on this post or email contact@mydigbeth.co.uk.

Comments on Draft Eastside Master Plan – March 2012

How the JFK memorial could look in Digbeth by Birmingham Mail

Regular readers may remember Nicky’s post last year about plans to restore the city’s JFK memorial, and display it in Digbeth.

Well, these plans are one step closer to becoming a reality after artist Oliver Budd, whose father Kenneth created the mosaic, returned the President’s head to piece he is painstakingly re-creating in his London workshop.

The finished piece will take pride of place on the corner of Digbeth High Street and Floodgate Street in June. The city hope to ask a senior White House official to unveil the restored mosaic.

It’s quite timely that the US athletics track and field team will be arriving in Birmingham for their Olympics training camp around June. Let’s hope it’s completed by then!

Where: Edible Eastside, Warwick Wharf, 122 Fazeley Street, Digbeth, B5 5RS

Regular readers of our site will already know of Edible Eastside, and the fact that the organisation has entered into a strategic partnership with Digbeth Residents Association.

Edible Eastside is an urban garden situated on a derelict industrial canal side space, which has been transformed into a temporary garden, run as a social enterprise by a team of volunteers.

Edible Eastside will rent plots to people and restaurants, run a café using the food grown, offer training courses and sell produce. The space was developed with Digbeth-based designers, k4 Architects, who are the masterplanners for the Warwick Bar area, where the garden is situated.

The landlord, ISIS Waterside Regeneration, offered the space at a peppercorn rent, and “are extremely excited to be setting in motion projects which will breathe life back into the area.”

Add in a tie-up with Fierce Festival, who will be running a performance installation at the site, and you have yourself a veritable community hub just waiting to be launched!

We strongly encourage anyone with an interest in Digbeth to come along to the launch of this fantastic new project on Sunday – here’s hoping the sun is still shining for the BBQ!

For further information, please contact Jayne Bradley on 07970 730646 or visit the website.

Birmingham Opera Company

Life is a Dream is an informal ‘walkabout’ production for which warm clothes and comfy shoes are recommended; the opera takes place around the audience, so you feel part of the show. With this innovative approach, along with staging in a disused warehouse, Birmingham Opera Company are, in my opinion, making the medium of opera far more accessible.

If you missed last night’s performance, don’t fret! There are a few more opportunities to catch the show:

Performance Dates: 23, 24, 27, 28, 30, 31 March at 19:30
Venue: Argyle Works, Great Barr Street, Birmingham, B9 4EX
Price: £17.50 (£10 concessions)

Further to MADE’s recent event, we can add to the Eastside Masterplan’s Consultation exercise by requesting the land is kept as landscaped open space next to the new HS2 station and Hotel La Tour.

DiG urges as many of our readers as possible to give feedback to Birmingham City Council over their plans. The full document is available below, and the consultation finishes on the 23rd March so get your comments in quick! Comments can be emailed to bigcityplan@birmingham.gov.uk

Eastside Masterplan