The £60m groundbreaking building will be clad in solar panels and would rise to 29-storeys containing nearly 250 co-living apartments.

Local developer and investor GNM Developments is proposing to redevelop a canalside site in the Gas Street Basin with the slender tower to be known as ‘The Narrowhouse’.

Designed by architects Broadway Malyan, the project will feature more than 4,000m2 of building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) on the building facades.

When complete, the building will capture more energy than the predicted needs of residents, with the ambition for the excess to be fed back into a local microgrid, allowing neighbours to benefit from this sustainable energy source.

Subject to planning consent, work on The Narrowhouse would begin in 2026 with completion scheduled for 2028.

Gerald Manton, managing director of GNM Developments, said: “The Narrowhouse is more than a building. It’s a statement about the future of sustainable urban living.

“This is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to position Birmingham as a global leader in sustainable development.”

Hugo Fitzgerald, principal at Broadway Malyan, added: “The Narrowhouse is a pioneering proposal which we hope will set a new benchmark, both in terms of energy-positive and super slim building design.

“The proposals ground the development in its history. Re-using stacked brick from the original building to form the podium makes the building relatable and with the retention of the Toll House, echoes the past.”