Developer plans 2016 start for River Street tower
The construction of a 42-storey residential building next to Mancunian Way is back on track, following the acquisition of the site by Forshaw Land & Property.
Chelmer Developments, on behalf of Dastur Trading, gained planning permission for 600 serviced apartments on the plot between River Street and Garwood Street in Manchester in January 2013. The tower was designed by Ian Simpson Architects, now SimpsonHaugh & Partners.
Construction of the scheme never began, it is believed because of funding issues.
A planning application changing the internal configuration of the tower has now been submitted to Manchester City Council by Forshaw, advised by SimpsonHaugh & Partners and Turley.
The proposal reduces the number of apartments from 600 to 420 and makes some minor alterations to the external design.
According to a cover letter for the application from Turley on behalf of Forshaw, the developer is currently in discussions with various private rented sector operators for the site.
The tower will include 19 three-bedroom, 269 two-bedroom, and 142 one-bedroom apartments, alongside leisure facilities, a restaurant and café.
The plot is currently occupied by a concrete frame for an unfinished residential block which was abandoned in 2005 when the developer went into liquidation.
Preparatory work for the demolition of the frame has already started on site.
If the revised application is approved, construction is expected to begin in 2016.
Yet more ugly, over-tall and completely uninspired generic rubbish from Ian Simpson. It’s clear that he – and the council – have this obsession with phallic symbols to try and reinforce Manchester’s standing as the second city, hellbent as it is on copying the Capital’s obsession with ‘tall equals best” without a single thought to what sort of microclimate such monstrosities create at ground level – I mean walk along Whitworth Street West when all three current tower schemes (21, 28 and 30 storeys) are complete and you might have difficulty trying to stand upright.
By Martin Gray
Fits in nicely with the grim dystopian aesthetic of the Mancuanian Way
By scrub