McAlpine set to start at Embankment West

Sir Robert McAlpine is expected to sign a contract in the coming weeks to deliver two residential towers at Embankment West in Salford for Select Property Group with a start on site following next month.

The contractor has been working under a pre-construction services agreement on the project, which has been designed by architect CallisonRTKL and will see the delivery of two towers, one of 16 storeys and another of 18.

At 16 storeys, Laurence Place will deliver 209 apartments, while the 18-storey Exchange Point includes 147 apartments. Both are being developed under Select Property Group’s newest brand, Origin Homes. The developer said more than 80% of the apartments at Laurence Place had already been sold.

Murraywood Construction started site clearance in April this year, and the site is now ready for construction to begin following the demolition of existing structures; railway arches bordering the site have also been exposed, reinforced and infilled.

Laurence Place will contain 209 apartments

In August this year, Select secured a deal with challenger bank OakNorth for a £40.6m funding package to support the delivery of the project, which borders Select’s CitySuites building.

It is expected the project will be delivered in 2020.

Select revised its original application for Embankment West in September last year. The original proposals were for 694 flats across towers of 34, 25, and 14 storeys in height, and were given the go-ahead by Salford Council in 2016.

These proposals were originally brought forward in a joint venture with Ask, but the developer sold its interest in the site to Select last year.

The refreshed application, granted planning consent in November 2017, reduced the height of the buildings to 18, 18, and 16 storeys in height, and cut the number of apartments to around 500.

The professional team on the project also includes planner Deloitte and Curtins as transport planner.

Origin Homes is Select’s fourth brand, following CitySuites, used for its serviced apartments offering; Affinity Living, its homes for private rent; and Vita Student, a student accommodation brand aimed at postgraduate and affluent students.