AL boss Mike Ingall hopes to woo media/tech companies with new plans for St John's
What would MIPIM be without a zippy scheme from Manchester's most dynamic property developer, Allied London.
In 2015 it was the 'Vertical Village', in 2016 it was an 'Enterprise Cluster', in 2017 it was the, erm... 'Vertical Enterprise Islands Campus UK'? (That might be wrong.) So what do they have up their sleeve for 2018?
It's easy this one, ABC, the new moniker for the reinvented Astley & Byrom House - which Allied purchased from the West Midlands Pension Fund last year.
The borders of the developer's St John's scheme will be expanded to include the sixties office blocks, which sit between Quay Street and St John's Gardens, with plans to retain and enhance their 1960s features alongside project architects, Levitt Bernstein.
The developer describes the buildings as 'true sixties', with 'many fine features from an era of innovation and originality'.
ABC - which is due to complete as early as the summer - will be targeted at film, TV, media and tech companies which 'seek a presence in the city centre'.
Allied London boss Mike Ingall said: "The ABC Buildings, once restored to their 60’s ethos and enhanced with an advanced tech infrastructure, will make powerful additions to our Enterprise City vision."
And that's not it from Allied London for MIPIM 2018, oh no.
The Spinningfields developer has also revealed plans for a new 'concept building' within St John's, a concept they're calling 'Enterpise City Campus', designed by architects Child Graddon Lewis (the practice behind St John's Trinity Islands towers).
Ingall said: “It’s MIPIM week, so as you would expect Allied London, with the help of CGL, has revealed a new idea - a concept building referred to as Enterprise City Campus; a 500,000 square foot integrated series of buildings that could become a new tech and media campus for Manchester."
"At this stage it’s only a concept," continued Ingall, "but could lead to a significant extension of Enterprise City - it’s the difference between ten and fifteen thousand workers.
"The building, if developed, would be an extension of Enterprise City and located adjacent to the new Factory arts centre, replacing a part of the Trinity Islands development," he said.
Find out more about Manchester's week in Cannes here from Our Man in MIPIM.
