Birmingham City Council has approved a compulsory purchase order which paves the way for London & Continental Railway's The Axis office development, Holliday Street, Birmingham.

The 4.2-acre site between the Mailbox and Arena Central is expected to see up to 1.2M SF of office space, according to a report submitted to the council's cabinet.

"In order to implement the planning consents, the developer (LCR) requires possession of a few private interests in the site — all of a leasehold nature; the developer has been unable to acquire despite its best efforts. Compulsory purchase is therefore essential in order to secure the land and premises needed for the approved development scheme to proceed," the report said.

The scheme, to include around 30K SF of retail floorspace, will occupy the place of a 1970s T-shaped office building of around 600K SF.

Detailed planning consent for the first phase of the four-building development was granted in April, and outline consent for the second phase was granted in October.