Ask Developments and Manchester city council have announced £100m plans to redevelop the 20-acre First Street site in the city as a new cultural and business quarter.
Speaking at MIPIM in Cannes, Ask chief executive Ken Knott and Manchester council chief executive Sir Howard Bernstein revealed proposals to create a new, culture-led destination, anchored by retail and leisure operators and with up to 1.25m sq ft of new office space.
Knott and Bernstein said the proposals could create 10,000 new jobs.
The plans feature a new facility for the Cornerhouse Art Centre and Library Theatre, which the backers hope will attract up to 1m people pa. The focal point will be a 50,000 sq ft building with a public square and outdoor performance space, for which an international design competition is being held.
The cultural hub, which will include bars, restaurants, retail and hotels, will open in summer 2014 and is located at the northern end of the First Street site.
Plans for the southern end of the site, close to the Mancunian Way, include a 250,000 sq ft “city block” building, which together with offices will include retail, a hotel and car-parking, plus a new public square.
The proposals also include 1.25m sq ft of “mid urban” offices on six separate sites in buildings ranging from 30,000 sq ft to 350,000 sq ft and up to six storeys in height.
The First Street site currently houses an office building in which Manchester city council occupies 140,000 sq ft on a temporary basis during the £175m redevelopment of its town hall complex.
Ask’s Knott said: “First Street is set to become Manchester’s most vibrant new neighbourhood, with a compelling blend of culture, leisure, retail and office space, and all in a perfectly located destination, rich in major amenity and connections.
“Our commitment to create a genuine destination will dramatically increase the appeal of First Street to commercial office occupiers.”
Bernstein added: “These plans represent the kind of imaginative and innovative thinking that Manchester is rightly renowned for the world over.
“As well as supporting existing jobs, this development will help attract others to what is an important gateway site into the city. In the aftermath of the recession and facing unprecedented public sector cuts, this is exactly the sort of scheme we need to get people into work, get our economy moving even faster, and show the world that Manchester is still an ambitious city on the up.”
daniel.cunningham@estatesgazette.com
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