Cityheart has acquired the £120m-GDV Royal George Village site on Greek Street in Stockport from Investar Property Group.
Royal George Village is the largest purpose-built apartment scheme in Stockport and will provide 442-homes. Investar was originally appointed as the developer in 2022.
The scheme is part of the 130-acre Town Centre West regeneration district, which is being driven forward by Stockport Mayoral Development Corporation. The district will deliver 4,000 new homes, alongside amenities, green spaces, new workspace and transport improvements, with the aim of transforming Stockport into the most liveable and well-connected town in Greater Manchester.
A £9m GMCA brownfield grant has been secured to support the delivery of the scheme, which was previously part of the Stockport College campus. Cityheart is now procuring a contracting partner for the first phase of the scheme and will commence demolition and construction works in mid-December. The full scheme is scheduled for completion in 2026.
The regeneration of the three-acre site on Greek Street and six neighbouring buildings will see the former college campus redeveloped into a mixed-use scheme which includes 442 flats both for sale and rent. The 115,000 sq ft Torkington Building will be converted into 122 flats, while the 60,000 sq ft Lyme Centre will be demolished and replaced with a 16-storey apartment block comprising 258 homes.
The Grade II listed Greek Street Building – the former Metropolitan Girls School – will be converted into co-working space for local businesses.
In addition, a new-build six-storey “gateway” building will be constructed providing 62 flats at the corner of Greek Street and Royal George Street, with off-plan sales set to launch in Q2 2024. The Hexagon lecture hall is set to be demolished and replaced with public realm and civic space. The 16,000 sq ft University Centre building will also be demolished to provide an internal courtyard offering public open space and private gardens for residents.
Jonny Wrigley, group chief executive at Cityheart, said: “Royal George Village is one of Stockport’s most important residential opportunities and we are proud to be bringing these much-needed contemporary homes forward, further enhancing the quality of housing in Stockport town centre. Since topping out our 196-apartment scheme with our joint venture partner Rise Homes at Stockport Interchange in May, we have been keen to contribute further to the regeneration of Stockport and investing in Royal George Village provides the ideal opportunity to continue our relationship with the town.
“We have made an immediate start on site and will implement a rapid build programme to deliver these high-quality new homes at Royal George Village, which will be a key contributor to Stockport’s ongoing renaissance.”
Eamonn Boylan, interim chair at Stockport Mayoral Development Corporation, said: “Delivering more, high-quality homes for local people to live in the town centre is where true regeneration starts – we then start to see the positive impact on our high streets, in our retail centres, and we create a larger workforce which attracts businesses and drives forward the town’s prosperity.
“2023 has seen significant progress to Stockport’s £1bn town centre regeneration and we look ahead to what is set to be a monumental year, with the completion of a number of our landmark developments.”
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