Fresh plans lodged for 43,000 sq ft Renaissance office
Property Alliance Group has submitted an application for a five-storey new-build office, having opted not to reuse the concrete frame of the former Premier House on Deansgate as originally planned.
The 43,000 sq ft office scheme forms part of the wider £200m redevelopment of the Renaissance site, being led by PAG and Starwood Capital.
The other elements of the three-part project include the refurbishment of the former Renaissance building into a 216-bedroom Treehouse hotel and the creation of 300 apartments within a new-build 27-storey tower.
Place North West reported in July that PAG was rethinking the office element of the plans.
Having originally planned to retain the concrete frame of the former Premier House, further investigation found this approach would “severely impact the deliverability of the project”.
Jon Matthews Architects is leading on design. Credit: via planning documents
Work to strip back Premier House to its frame has already taken place under plans approved last October.
However, the frame is now being knocked down by contractor PP O’Connor to pave the way for the revised, new-build proposals.
According to a planning statement prepared by Avison Young, the fresh approach to the office project is expected to:
- Improve the energy efficiency of the floorplates
- Rectify the previously compromised structure in terms of floor-to-ceiling heights that did not meet industry standards
- Increase the proposed quantum of employment floorspace of the development.
Jon Matthews Architects is leading on the design of the entire Renaissance masterplan.
This will be the only bearable element of this redevelopment. I still cannot believe they went with this monstrosity, I can’t even look at it it’s that ugly. Who in their right mind would think hey let’s paint some green bamboo on a brutalist building, it looks so wrong and so ugly and this is such a prime location.
By Michael
Just not high enough.
80 storeys or nothing.
By Anon
Looks really weird
By UNESCO rep
Please, please, please, just demolish the whole site and replace it with a stunning new high-rise office block instead.
By MC
Surely more storeys could be added or another thin tower squeezed in to make even more profit. Forget all that human-centric place-making stuff in the text books? We live to grab money. That is what Manchester is globally renowned for and its sense of PLACE; Folk come from far away to view its modern architecture and are awe-struck. Venice, Amsterdam, Brugge, Copenhagen? European rubbish!
By Anonymous
The whole project is really is horrible – the original plans included the demolition of the old hotel and the new tower enables pedestrians to promenade and view the river !
This is one ugly development and should be stopped by the City council – FAT CHANCE THOUGH !
By Rodders
I think they should have gone with a more experimental makeover with the brutalist section. It’s obviously an improvement but just exudes greenwashing.
By Anonymous
I suppose Anonymous 10.09 we could always expand and take in somewhere where little seems to happen, where is no investment and development few jobs and we have to travel back to Manchester to work. But where?
By NoRomanc
Can someone give anon 10:09 a chill pill and let us know how they’re getting on
By Anonymous
Come Architects lets have some gusto & vision
By CBA
Goodness me somebody must have ruined anonymous 10-09 breakfast this morning. Manchester is the third most city in the uk behind London and Edinburgh……..there must be something for people to see surely??
By Again
As ugly and ill-considered as the first attempt. The architects clearly know nothing about the new Part 0 if this and Glassworks are anything to go by…every heard of overheating to residential and office and what is to come regarding new regs? What industrial standards are their regarding floor to ceiling heights to office space? None, there is a BCO guide, that isn’t a standard that must be met…spinning it as if it doesn’t comply to justify demolition – sneaky. If those trees get installed on privately owned/rented terraces and that ‘greenwashing’ trailing moss is draped from the parapet of the office I will eat my foot. What a joke.
By ConstructionHawk
I think you’ll find that ‘anonymous 10-09’ was been sarcastic.
By SW
I think you’ve missed 10.09’s irony.
Anyhoo, couldn’t possibly build anything worthwhile here as the residents of No.1 Deansgate would complain – again.
Imagine…buying a city centre flat and having stuff built around you.
By Anonymous
The saving grace for this project is that the absolute eyesore we’ve had to endure for decades now is gone. Thought they were going to list that old escalator rusting away at the side of the building it’s been there for so long. Get Speakers house started on the other corner too and the whole bottom of Market St will look so much better.
By Anonymous
I think we all understand the games anonymous 10-09 gets up to but there is no harm in pointing out a few facts. Different owners have explored comprehensive development here for over 25 years but the economics don’t stack up for very obvious reasons. This will look fine with a fantastic operator. Even though the City continues to deliver high quality change, some schemes are still out of reach.
By Againagain
What a dreadful design, to sit alongside a gorgeous residential new-build and an attractive refurbishment. The main cgi gives the first impression of a giant container, designed by Hapag-Lloyd rather than an Architectural practise.
By Anthony Fallon
If ever there was a case for “destroy and rebuild” this was it. When I heard it had paused I allowed myself to get my hopes up (for around 3 seconds) that they’d take the opportunity to level it all, Introduce river access and create something worthy of such a prestigious, key spot in the city. Oh well.
By Tom