£30m Corn Exchange Transformation Nears Completion

David Blake 21 July 2016

44 YEARS after the council called for the deteriorating building to be bulldozed, the new owners of the Corn Exchange have laid bare the upper floors of the Grade II-listed building – dating back to 1837 - before work on the final phase of its £30m transformation begins.

Corn Exchange is a very complex building - there are seven different levels and thirteen separate staircases

Phase 1, which launched in August 2015, saw the former trading floor re-imagined as a new casual dining destination; with seventeen new restaurants – including Pho, Wahaca and Mowgli – launch in newly established units around the perimeter of the domed Manchester icon.

Now, fifteen months after the deal was struck, new owners Aviva and development partner Queensberry prepare to start work on Phase 2, which will bring a new 114-bedroom aparthotel – operated by Roomzzz – to the second, third, fourth and fifth floors of the building.

Works will see the reinstatement of the original grand entrance fronting onto Exchange Square and Hanging Ditch, and will include three large penthouse rooms, one of which will have access to the Corn Exchange’s distinctive turret.

Cabana is one of seventeen new restaurants to open in the Corn Exchange

“Corn Exchange is a very complex building,” said Rhys Westacott, Associate Director of project designers 5plus Architects, “there are seven different levels and thirteen separate staircases – and the challenge has been to make best use of the space while preserving its unique character.

“There were no building drawings or detailed plans so we discovered unexpected elements and nooks and crannies as the strip out went along and had to keep measuring and re-evaluating and re-drawing.”

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Mark Walton, Chief Operating Officer of Roomzzz, added: “Roomzzz Corn Exchange Manchester’s period features and beautiful bare brick walls will be merged with our ‘New Generation’ concept, which features bold bespoke interior designs. The resulting variety of rooms will range from ultra-sleek 21 sqm apartments to super luxury palatial penthouses."

Andrew Coles from Aviva said: “The whole ethos of the planned refurbishment and development from Aviva was to enhance the building's unique character, soul and integrity and future-proof its standing as a key city landmark.”

Work on Phase 2 will begin later this year, with Roomzzz expected to open in 2017.

Corn Exchange Timeline:

Market on the site since medieval times.

1837 - First permanent building erected

1890 - Work began on present building

1891 - The 1837 Exchange extended to a new building on Fennel Street by architects Ball and Elce

1895 - Architects Potts, Dixon and Pickup appointed by The Corn and Produce Company and the building was extended 'harmoniously' along Fennel Street and Cathedral Street

1900-1903 - A third frontage along Hanging Ditch was added to form the distinctive triangle. Over the entire course of construction, the markets and trading within the Exchange did not cease. When complete, the Corn Exchange contained over 300 offices, shops and warehouses, a 40-bedroom hotel and the central Exchange Hall under the domed glass roof

1922 - Three further adjoining buildings were acquired and the office and warehouse space extended

1930's - Gradual disuse of the trading floor during The Depression

Dec 1940 - The building suffered severe bomb damage in WWII

Late 1940's - Reconstruction of bomb damage