Birmingham-based developer St Modwen Properties has submitted detailed proposals for the £70m Longbridge town centre development.

The town centre plans, which will include 80,000sq ft (7,432sq m) of retail and restaurant space, will provide a major mixed-use component of the wider regeneration of the area. A hotel, the newly-created 2-acre (0.8-hectare) Austin Park and apartments also feature as part of the plans, which would open up the River Rea for the first time in a century.

If approved, the town centre will provide a new focal point for the wider £1bn regeneration of the former MG Rover works at Longbridge. Work on the £66m Bournville College - part of the proposed town centre - has already started, and is due to open to students in September.

St Modwen chief executive Bill Oliver said: "The submission of a planning application for the new town centre at Longbridge is a major milestone in the evolution of this project. "It underlines our expertise in taking on large scale regeneration projects and provides a clear indication that 2011 will be one of the most active years yet for this important scheme."