June start planned for Salford Quays towers

X1 Developments and its construction partner Vermont are targeting a June start on site for a 1,300-home scheme in Salford Quays, including a 41-storey tower which would be MediaCityUK’s tallest building.

Plans for the development of up to six buildings on a plot at Michigan Avenue, near to the Broadway Metrolink, were revealed by Peel L&P last year. Salford City Council granted outline consent in March, giving permission for the scheme to reach up to 47 storeys. Jeffrey Bell Architects and NJL Consulting advised on the project.

A reserved matters application has now been put forward to the council, with X1 and Vermont taking forward the scheme under the name of X1 MediaCityUK Phase II after acquiring the site from Peel. The plot adjoins X1’s development of four 26-storey residential blocks known as X1 Media City.

At one stage, X1 Media City UK Phase II was being marketed to investors as a development of five towers, “each with unique facades clad in shades of bronze, silver, gold, rose gold and platinum”.

While the varied facades remain, the designs have been amended by architect Jeffrey Bell after the council “voiced concerns” over a lack of defined public and private spaces, and the potential impact of the towers’ location on future development sites nearby, the reserved matters application states.

The application now details four buildings, ranging in height from the 41-storey tower that would be MediaCityUK’s tallest, to 14 storeys.

According to the planning application, X1 is planning to start on site by June 2020 subject to consent, taking advantage of Vermont already having a site office on the neighbouring plot.

In total, the scheme would comprise 1,298 apartments and 16 townhouses, split into 577 one-bedroom, 622 two-bedroom and 99 three-bedroom properties. There would also be 15,000 sq ft of ground floor commercial space.

Media City UK Phase II would be built in four phases, starting with a 31-storey block totalling 366 flats, alongside the public realm. The 41-storey tower would form the third phase.

While the application states that X1 is committed to building out the development, the company is understood to have made approaches to other developers to make an off-market sale of the site, asking for around £40m.

According to planner NJL Consulting: “The proposals seek to establish a new residential quarter that promotes a sense of identity as a high quality and inclusive, pedestrian friendly environment with the potential to stimulate increased activity and footfall within this key phase of development for MediaCityUK.”

Gillespies is advising on landscaping.