Friargate: Major demolition work scheduled for this week

Work on the Friargate development in Coventry city centre will take another major step forward this week when bulldozers move in to demolish a large part of Copthall House.

The demolition of the building, which currently dominates the entrance of Coventry railway station, will pave the way for the site to be cleared to allow construction of the new Coventry City Council offices, the first building of the project.

Demolition on the site, starting with the multi-storey car park in Eaton Road, began in August after specialist contractors D Hughes were brought in.

Some of the main offices near the railway station also began coming down last weekend.

The latest work will mean one lane of the clockwise ring road entry slip and a lane on Manor Road will be sectioned off to make way for a large crane.

Copthall House, near Coventry Station

Work will be restricted to off-peak hours, which means that no work will be carried out between 7am to 9.30am and 3.30pm to 6.30pm. The affected lanes will reopen on Monday.

A large section of the building will also be demolished on Sunday, with work scheduled between 5am and 9.30am. Temporary lights will be in operation during this time.

Coun Kevin Maton, Coventry City Councils cabinet member for business, enterprise and employment, said: The start of demolition on site is an exciting point in the Friargate project.

This is a vital step in the regeneration of the whole area, and one that will see the site cleared and prepared for the construction of a number of new buildings over the next few years.

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Friargate: Major demolition work scheduled for this week