NOMA developer wins Bolton’s £200m Crompton Place flagship
MEPC, the developer owned by global investor Federated Hermes, has been chosen to transform the site of the former shopping centre in the heart of the town into a mixed-use development, Place North West can reveal.
Best known for office-led projects including the NOMA district in Manchester and Wellington Place in Leeds, MEPC will now turn its attention to the £200m Crompton Place scheme in Bolton, which is envisaged as a residential-led development.
Crompton Place has the capacity to deliver up to 340 homes, a 110-key hotel, 80,000 sq ft of office space, and 5,000 sq ft of ground floor leisure.
The project is one of the highest profile regeneration opportunities in Greater Manchester and has the potential to transform Bolton’s underperforming town centre, according to the council.
Bolton Council bought the 280,000 sq ft shopping centre in 2018 as it looked to put in place a town centre masterplan.
That year, plans for a 110-bed hotel, 50 homes, and 113,000 sq ft of offices were put forward by a joint venture between the council, BCEGI, and Midia – but when it was realised the project did not make fiscal sense it was abandoned and the JV dissolved.
Some eight years later, as work to knock down Crompton Place reaches its conclusion, MEPC’s appointment marks a major milestone in bringing the council’s town centre vision to life.
MEPC was acquired by Federated Hermes, which has more than $870bn of assets under management, in 2020.
Bolton Council refused to confirm MEPC’s appointment.
Leader, Cllr Nick Peel, said: “I am delighted to confirm that the cabinet has approved the appointment of a new developer for the flagship Crompton Place regeneration project.
“This developer has a very impressive track record of delivering major multi-million-pound developments in some of the UK’s biggest cities. The decision comes at the end of a robust and highly competitive selection process.
“We are now subject to an eight-day legal ‘stand still’ period, after which we look forward to sharing more details of the exciting future for Crompton Place.”
MEPC declined to comment.
