Select unveils plans for 31-storey Manchester tower
The developer wants to create a 449-apartment development on the corner of Great Ancoats Street and Port Street.
Select Property Group has launched a public consultation on its latest Manchester project, first revealed by Place North West in June.
The development, designed by SimpsonHaugh Architects, would provide almost 450 homes within a 31-storey tower and an adjoining 11-storey block.
The apartments would be a mix of one-, two- and three-bedrooms and the scheme would also feature co-working spaces, cinema rooms and a residents’ gym.
Select bought the Port Street site, currently used as a surface level car park, from Leeds-based developer Town Centre Securities.
The scheme will be managed and operated by Affinity Living, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Select Property Group.
Affinity also operates two towers fronting the River Irwell off New Bailey Street, Affinity Riverview and Affinity Riverside.
In addition, two blocks under construction at Select’s Embankment West are nearing completion.
Adam Price, chief executive at Select Property Group, said: “Our plans will breathe new life into this underutilised site and complete the transformation of Great Ancoats Street.
“We want to understand how our plans can contribute to wider neighbourhood priorities and we’re looking forward to receiving feedback from local residents and businesses during our consultation.”
The online consultation runs until 27 October.
The proposals aim to link Ancoats and Piccadilly Basin and have been guided by the design principles set out in the Piccadilly Basin Strategic Regeneration Framework.
Earlier stages of Piccadilly Basin’s regeneration featured the creation of the 160,000 sq ft Urban Exchange Retail Park, a 232-space multistorey car park on Tariff Street, and the Dakota Hotel on Ducie Street.
Deloitte is the planning consultant, Re-form landscape architects is leading on landscape design, and Stephen Levrant Heritage Architecture is advising Select on the heritage elements of the scheme.
Really not a fan of this. The smaller development looks like a brick-clad version of the God awful Brooklyn development on Portland Street and the tower is so dull and lumpy.
By Byronic
Switch the tower to face GAS and have the smaller blocks facing the NQ and we’re on to a winner. Add a little more detailing to the brick blocks too.
By Andrew
I think given how busy Great Ancoats is with traffic and the proximity to Piccadilly station and the HS2/NPR station then an office would make more sense in the lower 11 storey block with resi in the tower…
By Dr B
Another day, another tower for Manchester.
By HSR
Another block of appartments in Manchester. Any spare bit of land, car park, old mill, old buildings etc etc is now planning for appartments blocks
By Darren Born Bred.
This is one of he blandest, least inspired and ugly buildings I have soon out forth. A cubic brown mega-block comprising as many sellable properties and retail space as you could unreasonably fit into every cubic metre of plot.. a monument to greed in a rejection of art scarring our beautiful city for the foreseeable future. Architecture should inspire whilst proving function, it is a rare art form that provides a purpose – contrary to the writing of Oscar Wilde not all art must be profoundly useless. Through great buildings we have a chance to shape our city for the future, inspire generations whilst allowing people and business to grow together. The proposal outlaid will not do any of things.
By Jonny
It looks horrendous, Manchester is becoming the ugliest city in the country
By Michael
I hope they will add balconies when this progresses through to a planning application.
This should be refused planning permission without the inclusion such a basic amenity.
By Balcony watch
Not good, looks like it’s straight from the 70’s
By James
An improvement over the surface car park, but the 1:1 cycle space and 20 parking spaces is a great example of good intentions that just don’t work in practice – all in the name of ‘being green’. Too much weight is placed on the proposed mobility hub I suspect.
By JR
This looks like the type of building other local authorities are pulling down.
I agree with the comments, I love it here but it is one of the ugliest cities in the country thanks to horrific development in the postwar period.
By Observer
I love tall buildings but its too tall in my opinion for the NQ but sadly money talks. 11/12 stories which can easily be seen from the picture would suit the area better
By Tomo
The Northern Quarter and Ancoats is characterised by a narrow street width with low to medium rise buildings, which gives the beautiful streets that make the area what it is. You can’t use that narrow street grain with towers of this height as you don’t get enough light in between the buildings. Either widen the streets or lower the building – Select Property group should know better.
By Oli
Better than the surface level car park and the old mill’s ground floor slab that have laid there for years, just get it built.
By Big Dub
Just a little bit greedy, at the end of port street we have a beautiful block of low rise georgian shops that were regenerated brilliantly. We’ll have to see how it ties in at that end. The car park also has a neighbouring single standing 2 storey terrace house.
By Anon
It looks awesome, I fully support it, that area has been an eyesore for a very long time now, move with the times & get it built..
By Jeff Blair
Well I like it. I’d like to see you lot do any better.
By McNally
Not sure what people are talking about Manchester being ugly. The grid layout and streetscape of the city centre and surrounds are absolutely beautiful and there are few better examples of this in the UK. For a metropolis of ~3m people you’re going to get towers as the land costs more, it’s simple economics.
Regarding said talls, it’s better for the environment, better for local businesses, better for the feel and life of a city. People complaining are nimbys and do not understand how cities should work or the direction of urban development (we’re just catching up to the modern world now). Downtown Chicago or Manhattan, Sydney, Brisbane, Toronto? These places with grid layouts and towers are not considered ugly, they’re exciting, modern hubs of entertainment, culture, science, music, sport etc and have large populations (and subsequently towers) to be able to support that.
Would you rather we continue to concrete over all of our greenbelt or wilderness, or existing farmland and countryside, or build densely in our cities reducing carbon emissions from travel, freeing up land for rewilding, increasing footfall for shops in the city and increasing tax revenue for the council?
It’s really, really not difficult…
By The Squirrel's Nuts
Unfortunately @TSN, people don’t understand you can’t have it both ways. As you say NIMBYs everywhere you go; in the suburbs, in the country and unfortunately we are starting to see too many in this great city. We live on a tiny island that has a growing and ageing population, we wish to be greener and save our green belt yet we have people complaining about high rises on brownfield sites that have been unused for decades. The only way we can accommodate the growing population and become greener as a nation is by building higher in our cities.
By New Wave
Can’t wait to see future developments in & around Manchester
By Karen Pennington
Great news.The usual suspects will always complain based on one simple CGI but then what can you expect when so much development is happening in one place and not so much elsewhere? The whole Piccadilly basin regeneration is incredible for those of us who remember the area all the way back to the 70’s. More power to all of the developers who have poured investment into the area and continue to do so.
By NewObserver