The proposals, submitted to Birmingham City Council for developer Bluecastle Capital, would transform the vacant 42 High Street Birmingham site into 729 build-to-rent flats with commercial uses at ground floor. It would be Birmingham’s tallest building alongside Associated Architects’ 172m-tall Curzon Wharf scheme, which secured approval in 2023 but has not yet begun construction. Squires’ tower would replace a disused 1950s Marks & Spencer department store, designed by Birmingham architect James M Munro & Son. The application says 51 per cent of the targeted land will be made available as publicly accessible space, intended to improve the connectivity between Birmingham’s commercial centre and the upcoming HS2 station. New landscape around the base of the building has been drawn up by Layer Studio in collaboration with Squires.