Proposals aired for Castle Irwell housing

The redevelopment of the Castle Irwell student village in Salford is inching closer, with a public consultation event to be held next week on plans for up to 500 homes at the site.

Euan Kellie Property Solutions is preparing a planning application for the site on behalf of its owner, the University of Salford. Along with family housing, the site could house riverfront apartments and retail space, while land will be set aside for a primary school and changing facilities for new playing fields.

The site in total covers 35.7 acres, with five acres to be set aside for school provision. EKPS estimates that the retail element, which could comprise 25,000 sq ft, could generate around £140,000 a year in business rates for Salford City Council.

Kellie said: “We are excited to bring forward plans to redevelop Castle Irwell, a site with a rich local history and close to many people’s hearts. Our plans will provide family homes and new shops for the local area, as well as a new primary school that will help address known capacity challenges across the city.

“Before we submit our plans to Salford City Council, we want to hear the views of local people, which will be fed into our final proposals.”

A drop-in exhibition will take place at The Beacon Centre, London Street, Salford on Monday 26 March between 2pm and 7pm.

An Environmental Impact Assessment scoping report was submitted last month for the Charlestown project. The turnstile building remaining from the site’s days as Manchester Racecourse remain and are intended to be included in the scheme.

The student village closed in June 2015 after 42 years and was affected by a fire the following year. It offered more than 1,000 student beds in four-storey blocks, which have now been demolished, along with the former Members’ Stand, which was converted into the Pavilion student bar and nightclub.

Day Architectural is the project’s architect.