Sign off due for New Cross public realm strategy

Manchester City Council’s executive is expected to approve a final public realm strategy for the city’s New Cross area at a meeting today, with £6.8m due to be spent on tree planting, footpath improvements and road crossings.

A consultation on the plan was undertaken between August and September this year, after the draft plan was approved by the council in July, and the final plans have been recommended for approval at today’s meeting.

The area is bordered by Swan Street to the south, Oldham Road to the east, Rochdale Road to the west, and Thompson Street to the north. A neighbourhood development framework for the area was adopted in 2015.

New Cross has seen a flurry of planning applications and project starts in the last six months, with proposals including a nine-storey aparthotel and a 155-apartment scheme by Beech Design & Build.

Create Construction has also started on a £17.5m, 221-bedroom Hampton by Hilton hotel on the corner of Sharp Street and Rochdale Road.

The council now plans to undertake a comprehensive overhaul of the area’s streets to help enable further residential development.

Works will include soft and hard landscaping, tree planting, installation of controlled pedestrian crossings, and improvement works to footpaths and roads.

The council said it would cost £6.8m to carry out all the strategy’s proposed projects. This will be backed by developer contributions of between £5,000 and £7,000 per new residential unit in the area.

Consultant Aecom, which prepared the strategy for the council, said it would cost £2.9m to improve footpaths in the area and £1.5m for road improvement works. A tree planting programme in the area is also set to cost £760,000.

Controlled crossings will be the first element of the plans to be installed, with all the works expected to complete over a 10-to-20-year period, subject to market conditions.

The report to the council’s executive said: “The development of sustainable public realm within New Cross will contribute to the vibrancy and attractiveness of the area and will create a seamless connection from the neighbourhoods of North Manchester to the city centre and the employment, leisure and cultural opportunities throughout the regional centre and wider Greater Manchester conurbation.”

 

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Lovely. This area certainly needs greening up!. I hope street lighting will also be improved as these new buildings go up and create dark and narrow side roads?

By David

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