THING OF THE WEEK
HARVEY NICKS… High-end retailer Harvey Nichols is targeting residents at Renaker’s Deansgate Square this Christmas. A temporary seasonal shop is to open up at the skyscraper cluster selling food and wine, as well as beauty and home items. A two-bedroom apartment in North Tower could set you back more than £1,800 a month according to Rightmove. Let’s hope residents have enough disposable income left over to splash out on cheese and Cab Sauv.
PATHWAY… Ground could finally be about to break on a project to deliver what would be Salford’s tallest tower. One Heritage’s eponymous 55-storey skyscraper is to be handed a boost next week if the city council agrees to sign over a slither of riverside land to the developer. Salford acquired the land – facing the Irwell off New Bridge Street in Greengate – in 1991 for the provision of a section of riverside walkway. On Monday, the authority is due to hand it over to One Heritage on a 999-year lease to unlock the 545-apartment development.
FIRE… Manchester City Council will not be holding any of its eight annual bonfire and fireworks displays this year. The authority said it had taken the decision “reluctantly” and added it recognised many people would be disappointed the events had been called off for the second straight year due to Covid concerns. The eight displays include 40,000-capacity extravaganzas at Heaton Park and Platt Fields Park, as well as a 20,000-strong gathering at Wythenshawe Park. While pyromaniacs and lovers of loud noises will be upset by the decision, it is great news for Manchester’s dogs.
RUMBLE IN THE JUNGLE… News that Liverpool’s Lyceum could become an indoor mini-golf attraction was met with indignation. How could such a beautiful, iconic building be used in such a way? But surely something is better than nothing? At least that is the view of one commentator, who said: “In an ideal world we’d see our buildings used to their best potential, and for uses that benefit the public the most. However, that is not the market that exists. Jungle Rumble is willing to invest in, and sensitively restore, the building. Surely that’s better than letting it continue to rot?” Well put.
VEGETABLE POWER... Pendle Council is taking a leaf out of McDonald’s book in a bid to lower its carbon footprint. The fast-food chain runs its lorries on used cooking oil and now Pendle has agreed to try out a sixth-month trial that will see its bin wagons and road sweepers powered by bio-gas made from vegetable oil. The switch could trim up to 500,000 kg of CO2 per year from the authority’s carbon budget and contribute to the vehicles’ five-a-day.
BALANCING BUDGETS… Some good news for those who bemoaned the cost of the Great Ancoats Street overhaul: it came in under budget. This may not surprise those who have lambasted the council for failing to live up to its promise of creating a “European-style boulevard” and questioned how it managed to spend £9m on re-tarmacking the road and planting a few trees. The fact is the project came in just under £9m. This week the council agreed to designate the leftover budget, around £155,000, to a project that has cost more than originally expected, the Stockport Road Pinch Point Scheme.