Soller plans Oxford Road student housing
Proposals to redevelop a vacant bank into a purpose-built student accommodation scheme have been submitted to Manchester City Council.
Soller Group, which is behind plans for a 120,000 sq ft office elsewhere in the city, wants to redevelop the former Barclays Bank on the corner of Oxford Road and Grosvenor Street.
The four-storey building has been boarded up since 2015 and will be retained and extended upwards by a single floor under Soller’s plans.
Overall, the project will provide 20 flats within Manchester’s university district, as well as 3,000 sq ft of ground floor commercial space.
Define Architects is leading on design and Ashton Hale is advising on planning. To learn more, search for reference number 140735/FO/2024 on Manchester City Council’s planning portal.
Soller has previously secured consent for several different iterations of the scheme including converting the building into studio apartments.
This is the student area. Surely they can design something more interesting?
By Anonymous
Design appears low quality and out of scale and out of keeping with its surroundings.
By Anonymous
‘The scheme has been in the works for several years’… but this is the design that Define Architects have come up with? An improvement to the design is definitely needed, very uninspiring and not suited to the location at all. Also not sure this location is suited to student accommodation considering the proximity of a number of bars/clubs etc.
By Anonymous
Worth noting the proposal is to convert the existing building and not demolish and replace. This is a far more sustainable way to regenerate the site, but obviously limits the scope for design.
I’m sure the flats will be popular, having to share a building with just 19 other students, rather than hundreds! Great to see some commercial ground floor use too, to animate the street level.
By Anonymous
Wow very rarely do I comment but I thought with this one it was necessary, it looks like something that you would find in a kindergarten Lego class, has this really been designed by an architect practice, really!
By Simon
So they’ve taken an ugly building and want to make it look ungainly as well?
By Anonymous
I think they’ll have to do better than that.
By H
No worse than that orange and white one the uni built opposite!
By John
Stop. Building. Developments. In. Manchester. With. White. Rendering. It’ll look like shite in no time, stained in pigeon crap and general muck. It’s not bloody Santorini.
By El Dibnah
The whole row (bar the apartments on the far end) need bulldozing and replacing with something of merit – something 4 to 6 storeys in height to make use of the views over All Saints Gardens across the road.
By Anonymous
If this gets approved then scrap the MCC Planning Service.
By Anonymous
I think a lot of the commentors need to find out the context before commenting. It’s a refurb on a tiny site, not a new build.
On the other hand, PNW, does it still count as purpose-built if it’s a refurb?
By Anonymous
That whole stretch opposite the park is massively out of context now and would be a fantastic opportunity to develop. I imagine they’re all separate owners now though so I imagine we’re stuck with it. It’s good that all the units are full, at least.
By Anonymous
This comment section needs to think before they type.
The existing building is a 4 storey derelict concrete block.
The proposals (yes boring and square, plus white cladding is a poor choice) are not out of character (multiple buildings exceed 5-storeys within a stones throw), the building is square due to the land ownership and uses its space efficiently.
I am in no way affiliated with this developer, however these comments are insolent.
By Anonymous
Anything is better than nothing…its been an empty ugly eyesore for too long…get it built or knock it down and replace it completely
By Anonymous
It’s not render it’s stone, take a few minutes to actually understand what you are commenting about would be a start. Also it’s a poor building with little windows, in it. They are retaining the shell/structure so it’s form is largely dictated by the existing. Then adding a storey or two. Personally it’s too tall for me, but apart from that its form is balanced.
By Dan
That’s not a good enough facelift/design for such a prominent site is it?
By Dr B
some miserable people on here.
considering how ugly the old disused concrete block is, this is quite a good proposal. It wins no beauty prize but is a massive improvement on the eyesaw thats currently there
By Anonymous
TWENTY?
I’m not suggesting a Skyscraper or owt, but surly at least 50 dwellings would be a better use of the space? Or are there Height Restrictions here?
By Anonymous
No, skyscrapers are destroying Manchester, I where there yesterday and the wind was dangerous and it was a ghost town, lots of places closed
By Anonymous
Why not use brick? The fumes from the main road will dirty the white render and cladding in no time.
By Anonymous
You have to laugh when trolls say Manchester is a ghost town and think this is a skyscraper.
By Maybe where you live babe
It will be rejected on the grounds of it being too short and ugly. Planners will recommended to be at least 36 storey.
By Charles De Lacey
Is there no community area at all?! Not even a residents lounge or anything?! I appreciate some students prefer little studios like this as opposed to self contained flats but for the 20 residents there should at least be a lounge for socialising. Either this or 4 self contained flats of 5 ensuite bedrooms with a shared lounge and kitchen on each floor.
No issue with the height here, could maybe get a an extra floor or two in but easier said that done when it’s a refurbishment.
And to agree with everyone else. Why not just a brick facade to blend in?
By MC
Do people bother reading the article. They’re redeveloping the existing building that’s stood empty for years.
It’s the student district, so yes, student accommodation is appropriate.
Manchester a ghost town? Lol, did you have your eyes closed?!?!
By Raevon