MANCHESTER City Council Executive are expected to rubber stamp new proposals today (Weds 29 July) for the city's landmark First Street development and plans for the ten acre former BBC site on Oxford Road.
However, the former BBC site has now been deemed unsuitable for the ambitious new Henry Royce institute
FIRST STREET - Office floorspace doubles and residential rethink of First Street South.
It was revealed back in May that First Street developers Ask had sold their interest in the £500m First Street site to the UK subsidiary of European real estate firm Patrizia Immobilien for an undisclosed sum.
The first completed phase of First Street, identified as First Street North, includes: the new £25m HOME arts centre; the 208-bed Innside Melia hotel; the 180,000 sq ft Number One First street office block (occupied by Auto Trader and Gazprom); a 700-space Q-park multi-storey car park; 274 Vita luxury student flats; a new public square and multiple food, drink and retail units.
Since the acquisition, the First Street partners (Patrizia, Ask and the City Council) have developed an updated First Street development framework from that approved in 2012, including:
- A higher density of development. Whereas the 2012 framework envisaged six to eight storey buildings, the 2015 framework envisions seven to eleven storeys.
- An extension of the total planned office floorspace from 1m sq ft to 2.1m sq ft
- A complete rethink of First Street South. In 2012 the framework envisaged a large food store, 350 student beds, a 120-bed hotel, together with car parking and retail space. The updated 2015 framwork envisions a new residential mixture of townhouses and apartments delivered by 2018.
- To speed up plans for a potential residential development on the Little Street car park.
Of First Streets combined 3.86m sq ft of total space: 58% will be office space; 27% residential; 7% retail and leisure; 6% car parking and 2% civic and cultural amenities.
If approved by the Council Executive the revised plans for First Street will go to public consultation.
First StreetFORMER BBC SITE - £235m Henry Royce Institute will NOT be located on-site
In April developer Bruntwood - who acquired the site from holders Realty Estates in March 2015 - put forward a revised masterplan to the council for the ten-acre former BBC site on Oxford Road.
The masterplan included 'two distinct development zones' comprising the £235m Sir Henry Royce Institute; 1.2m sq ft of office and research space; 1000-space multi-storey car park; six residential blocks offering 650 new apartments; 100,000 sq ft of commerical space and two new public squares.
However, the former BBC site, bounded by Oxford Road, the River Medlock, Princess Street, Charles Street and the Mancunian Way, has now been deemed unsuitable for the ambitious new Henry Royce institute announced by Chancellor George Osborne in December 2014.
The new report states instead that the world leading centre for materials research would be located closer to the existing National Graphene Institute (NGI) and Graphene Innovation Centre (GEIC) on the University of Manchester's own estate.
The report states:
'While locating the Royce Institute on the BBC site was initially felt to provide an opportunity for the facility to be more centrally located among the research cluster, further analysis and a better understanding of the Institute’s functions suggests that it would deliver the greatest benefit, optimal operational performance and enhance academic collaboration by being more closely located to the existing National Graphene Institute and the new Engineering development.'
Bruntwood propose until a new science-based use can be found, the site be left 'for the time being'.
Former BBC site(main image credit: airviews.info)
