Final two battle it out for £1.5bn ID Manchester  

Peel L&P with Urban Splash, and Bruntwood SciTech with London-based investor and developer Stanhope are vying for selection by the University of Manchester for the 4m sq ft mixed-use scheme.

The university is considering bids for the £1.5bn ID Manchester project after the four-party long-list was reduced to two parties. HBD and Singapore-based investor Mapletree Investments made the final four but have since dropped out of the running, Place North West understands.

The successful party is expected to be announced in the coming weeks after the university restarted the procurement process having put it on hold due to the pandemic.

ID Manchester is intended to attract science, research, development, cultural and technology companies to the university’s property estate. The university is freeing up the site as it moves to new buildings south of the inner ring road in its southern campus, such as the £400m Manchester Engineering Campus Development, which is nearing completion after a funding freeze delayed university projects.

ID Manchester Blue Block 1078 Long Edge

ID Manchester is one of the last major development sites in the city centre

At ID Manchester, a total of 2.6m sq ft of offices and other workspace is proposed, along with some residential development and three acres of public realm.

The 26-acre city centre site is next to the 650,000 sq ft, grade two-listed Sackville Building, which also offers an opportunity for repurposing, according to the university. The site was formally home to the University of Manchester Institute of Science & Technology, or UMIST, which merged with the University of Manchester in 2004.

Sheppard Robson, Arup, and Faithful+Gould have so far supported the university to develop the vision for ID Manchester, based on the principles of the existing framework for the site, drawn up by Bennetts Associates. This will be refreshed once a JV partner is chosen.

CBRE is advising the university on the procurement process. 

All parties declined to comment. 

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There’s density, and there’s there’s town cramming. This tends towards the latter.

By Sceptic

Both have strong evidence of place making albeit Brentwood have friends in Manchester

By TJL

Surely Peel have to get this?, Bruntwood already has one Innovation Zone so the time is now for some fresh ideas and a bit of the MediaCity stardust, that Peel L&P will be able to bring.

By Innovation Zoner

How can Urban Splash be given any further contracts before remediation of flats like The Chips building on Lampwick Lane. Chips flats were iconic design by Urban Splash and have found to have dangerous cladding. They should be forced to remediate, as promised, before getting any further contracts.

By Cynthia Mellish

Hope I’m wrong but by the looks of it the University should’ve tried harder, thought bigger, and had the confidence to deliver a spectacular name (s) from the world of science and tech to partner with and propel our global institution into the 21st century. Instead we get the usual suspects. It feels too stale, too dreary, too predictable, currently looks like an opportunity wasted

By Tannoy

Hope lots of the green space around this area is retained, alongside some of the existing buildings

By Chris

Glad this is progressing. A very significant development again for Manchester. There seems to be no end to development even now. Let’s hope they can maintain the quality for what will be a prime location.

By Simon

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