New housing and transport schemes approved in Manchester

Four major schemes have been approved in Ancoats and New Islington, beginning a new phase of regeneration for the area with more housing and sustainable transport.

A residential scheme by Manchester Life, Eliza Yard, will deliver 118 new homes in the Poland Street Zone, with a mix of one, two and three-bedroom apartments for sale, along with commercial and workspaces on the ground floor.

Great Places also plan to build 68 affordable homes in a vacant two-acre site behind Downley Drive, with 45 apartments offered for social rent, 12 houses for shared ownership and 11 for affordable rent.

Manchester City Council and Great Places will additionally redevelop the remains of the Ancoats Dispensary, delivering a mixture of 39 one and two-bed apartments for affordable rent, and preserving the building’s facades on Old Mill Street and Lampwick Lane.

Manchester Life will also develop a Mobility Hub on behalf of the Council, which will provide an electric car share club, e-bikes, and visitor cycle parking spaces to enable residents to adopt sustainable transport methods.

Sir Richard Leese, leader of Manchester City Council, said: ‘These applications are a statement of intent – that we are not finished in Ancoats and New Islington and there’s still a huge amount of ambition for these neighbourhoods two decades on from the first regeneration schemes were launched in this part of the city.

‘These applications tell a story of a city focused on recovery following the pandemic, driving economic growth in a way that supports the city’s low carbon agenda and investing in what local people want and need – affordable homes, walking and cycling infrastructure, and public space.

‘The Mobility Hub in particular is a UK first that will help Ancoats become a low traffic neighbourhood, centralising parking amenity and deliveries, while increasing access to bike and car share schemes, and electric vehicle charging. It’s this type of innovation in our city that is future proofing our neighbourhoods, encouraging active travel and limiting carbon.’

Executive chairman of Manchester Life, Marty Edelman, added: ‘Today’s approvals enable Ancoats and New Islington to advance as a sustainable and inclusive community that delivers housing for the city and creates opportunity for the businesses and residents who call it home.

‘Our strong partnership with the Council and Great Places on these projects was vital to the fulfilment of our role as developer and placemaker, to our pursuit of being able to welcome a broader range of people to the neighbourhood, and to enabling families to stay as their housing needs change.

‘We’re committed to commencing development this year to maintain momentum and support the North West’s construction industry as we move beyond the pandemic.’

In related news, the number of affordable homes in Manchester is expected to exceed 7,500 by 2025, with nearly 4,000 affordable homes completed or in the pipeline in the North and East of the city since 2016.

Photo supplied by Manchester City Council