Birmingham hotel featuring Britain’s first vegetarian restaurant to be regenerated

It started life in the late 1800s as a vegetarian restaurant and hotel - believed to be the first ever vegetarian restaurant in the UK.

The Victorian-built Murdoch Chambers & Pitman Building in Corporation Street in Birmingham city centre hosted the likes of Mahatmah Gandhi in its heyday.

But these days it’s standing empty - apart from a couple of fast food outlets on the ground floor.

However, the fortunes of the landmark are set to change after developer MP Devco Limited drew up proposals to transform it into an ‘aparthotel’ offering 136 apartments.

The plans are being backed by West Midlands Combined Authority which has agreed in principle to make an investment to kick-start the scheme - which is expected to create more than 70 jobs.

When did Gandhi stay at the hotel?

The Murdoch Chambers & Pitman Building was originally built in 1896 by J Crouch and E Butler for Dean’s Furniture.

The Pitman’s restaurant is thought to have been named after Sir Isaac Pitman, then vice-president of the Vegetarian Society and creator of Pitman’s shorthand.

The building features carvings depicting its early uses, showing diners at the Pitman Vegetarian Restaurant and workers at Dean’s Furniture offices.

Pitman’s restaurant had expanded into a hotel by 1898 and was still open when Gandhi visited the city in the 1930s. Later uses of the buildings included offices and barristers’ chambers.

Will the surrounding area around Murdoch Chambers & Pitman Building on Corporation Street be developed?

With the on-going shift away from bricks and mortar retail to on-line shopping, it is hoped the scheme will also help revitalise the top end of Corporation Street, traditionally one of the city centre’s premier streets.

It is also the location of other historic buildings such as the Grade I Listed Victoria Law Courts and the Grade II Listed Methodist Central Hall, which has stood empty for nearly 20 years.

In approving the investment in principle, the WMCA Board was told how the proposed development would restore and revitalise the entirety of the historic building and its façade, enhancing the historic and cultural distinctiveness of the local area and integrating well with the other Victorian architecture within the vicinity.

The Board was also told how the developer had committed to utilising modern methods of construction while reducing carbon emissions and that the aparthotel would support and address growing city centre housing and commercial market demand while providing additional jobs for the region.

What has the West Midlands Combined Authority said about the plans in its own words?

WMCA said it is the latest in a series of investments that it is making using money it has secured from Government to provide new homes, jobs and commercial spaces on urban, brownfield sites.

The investment is also aimed at supporting the West Midlands’ economic recovery from Covid 19 while reducing pressure on the green belt.

Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands and chair of the WMCA, said: “Murdoch & Pitman is an iconic city centre building with a glorious history.

“This scheme will breathe new life into the building and the area, helping to safeguard a valued part of our local heritage.

“It is also yet another example of how the WMCA is putting its funding to good use to help drive forward a successful economic recovery from Covid-19 by transforming brownfield sites into new homes and communities, creating vital jobs in the process.”

Cllr Mike Bird, WMCA portfolio holder for housing and land and leader of Walsall Council, added: “This is just the latest in a series of investment commitments we have continued to make throughout the pandemic, helping to provide market confidence and put in place the building blocks required to drive the region’s post-Covid-19 economic recovery plans.

“The plans for the Murdoch Chambers & Pitman Building show that with the right investment it is possible to reinvent our historic buildings in a way that remains true to their heritage but also meets the needs of the 21^st century.”

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