Latest Portugal Street East scheme to be considered by city council

Olympian and Aecom’s plans for two residential towers at Portugal Street East in Manchester have moved to the next stage of the planning process, a year after first being submitted to the council.

The proposals for two towers, designed by 5plus Architects, were first mooted in mid-2017 and Aecom and Olympian agreed a joint venture for the site, Rammon House,  in September that year. Aecom’s construction arm, Tishman, was attached as main contractor for the project.

At 23 and 29 storeys, the development would include 488 flats and be connected by a podium.

Olympian announced the planning application had been submitted in August 2018, and a further wave of documents have been put to the council in August 2019 in order for the application to be validated.

The scheme forms part of the Portugal Street East regeneration framework, which involves several landowners and separate development plans.

Capital & Centric’s plans for a Leonardo Hotel were validated earlier this year and are expected to go to committee in the coming months.

Other projects coming forward include a 23-storey residential block from Forshaw Land & Property, designed by SimpsonHaugh, which is currently being reworked.

The fourth application is for the public realm, the plan which had to involve all of the landowners working together to form a collaboration agreement.

According to Deloitte’s documents submitted with the Olympian application: “Following a period of more than 18 months of discussions and collaborative working, a collaboration agreement has been put in place between all landowners which will secure the total delivery of the Portugal Street East masterplan. The collaboration agreement serves to ensure certainty can be provided in the long term around how development plots and intervening public spaces and highways will be developed and managed.”

Deloitte said the Olympian scheme is hoped to be the first project to come forward. However, Capital & Centric’s hotel proposal is ahead in the planning process, with Bowmer & Kirkland starting on site with enabling works, and hotel operator Leonardo keen to be open by 2021.

Olympian and Aecom’s construction partner Aecom Tishman, is “ready to start as soon as planning permission is achieved”, according to the planning document.