Airport City North work to begin within weeks
Manchester City Council on Thursday approved the planning application for the northern element of the £650m Airport City, an ambitious mix of offices, hotels, retail and leisure.
Manchester Airports Group said it would start infrastructure work within weeks. There will be a new spine road linking to the motorway network. Initial construction and enabling works for the creation of the new road will commence in March 2013.
Airport City is the focal point of the Enterprise Zone for Greater Manchester, which surrounds the UK's third busiest airport, and includes areas around University Hospital South Manchester and Wythenshawe.
A new Metrolink extension through Wythenshawe is under construction and will link Airport City to Greater Manchester's successful tram network by 2016. A new landscaped 'green bridge' will connect the new development to the Airport and its public transport interchange.
John Atkins, Airport City director, said: "The planning approval is a major milestone, underlining the progress made in the last 12 months and enables us to progress to the delivery stage in 2013, driving forward opportunities to attract investment and create jobs."
A new 13-acre park surrounded by a district of new buildings will form the centrepiece of Airport City North. Buildings will be between three and eight storeys tall.
The outline planning application for Airport City (North) was submitted to Manchester City Council in November 2012, following extensive public consultations in the local area by M.A.G, the parent company of Manchester Airport. The planning application was approved by the Planning and Highways Committee on 17 January 2013. The site is the northern component of Airport City, currently referred to as Airport City (North) and is also part of the Greater Manchester Enterprise Zone.
In November 2012, MAG was granted outline planning approval for the £100m World Logistics Hub development in the southern part of the Enterprise Zone.
Advisers to MAG on Airport City include 5plus Architects, Drivers Jonas Deloitte, Jones Lang LaSalle, Urban Strategies Inc, Planit IE, Aecom, Davis Langdon and CBRE.
