Plans for West Bromwich 'vertical forest' at cinema site

Hundreds of plants on all sides of the building have been proposed

A cinema could be demolished and turned into a 15-storey "vertical forest" under plans for homes similar to those seen in Holland, Italy and China.

The block of apartments, called Wellbeing Tower, has been proposed for West Bromwich, with hundreds of plants adorning the sides.

Designers say the replacement for King's Cinema, which opened in 1974, would "create a living garden".

The cinema closed in 2002, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Seventy-seven apartments with ground floor shops have been proposed, with Asian, African and European plant species set to feature.

The plants would be tested in wind tunnels before installation to prevent uprooting in bad weather.

An imagined street view of the proposed Wellbeing Tower

The proposal falls under Sandwell Council's Development Action Plan as a new opportunity to develop a range of high-quality homes, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Paranjit Sehdeva, director of Integrated Designs & Associates Ltd, said the idea was to "create a living garden" on the outside.

"We thought people can't always have gardens in apartment towers, so we'll bring the garden to them, and create a 'garden atmosphere' on their balcony, so every single apartment has a garden accessible to them from their balconies.

"We call it the Wellbeing Tower because it is designed around that. People should have a place to live, where... they have access to a garden facility that will assist them in their living... It's important for mental health."

• Latest news from the West Midlands

One West Bromwich resident, Pepe Adrahams, said: "Don't you think we should be building bars, restaurants, nightclubs, and bowling alleys for our youth and bring cash into our town... ?"

Another resident, Linda White, said: "We don't need more apartments in the town centre, we need amenities instead."

Bawa Singh Dhallu, a Labour councillor for West Bromwich Central, said: "I am not sure myself of the planning into this redevelopment, but I am definitely in favour of regeneration.

"No one has put concerns to me yet, but I would be happy to speak on their behalf if they so wished to."