A six-storey extension to the Birmingham City University campus at Eastside has been given the unanimous backing of council planners.
The canalside development, on the corner of Curzon Street and Cardigan Street, is the latest step in BCU's move to a £260 million city centre campus from Perry Barr.
Known as 'Plot 2a', the extension to the existing £63 million Curzon Building is due to open in 2017 and will include teaching rooms and experimental and social learning departments.
Up to 3,000 students will use the extended part of building, the first phase of which opened last month.
The plans, which were lodged during the summer, were given the go ahead by the council's planning committee.
Coun Peter Douglas Osborn (Con Weoley) said: "This is further welcome regeneration of Eastside. Putting it next to the canal is a wonderful idea.
"The students will enjoy the facilities. The development will also benefit the area and we hope it will give a kick-start to other developments such as the Belmont Bicycle Works."
Paul Hartley, interim por vice-chancellor at Birmingham City University, said: "This project marks another significant milestone in our multi-million pound estates development programme, that is helping transform the Eastside of Birmingham.
"The additional teaching and learning spaces housed in the new building will allow us to accommodate our expanding student numbers to serve future generations.
"Birmingham City University is committed to providing the best possible learning experience for our students and this new building is pivotal to that aim."
This development is the latest in a long line of regeneration work on the previously vacant land close to where the new HS2 station will be built.
Both Eastside City Park, in front of Millennium Point where BCU is the main tenant, and the university's new Parkside building opened in 2013.
Parkside houses the faculty of arts, design and media which has five TV studios including the largest green screen outside of London and the MediaCityUK complex in Salford.
And a few weeks ago, the new-look BCU Students' Union building opened in the former Eagle & Ball pub (below) next to where this extension will be built while work is progressing on the new 13-storey, No1 City Locks student accommodation tower.
