Manchester Council kicks off quartet of resi developments

Manchester City Council has approved £5.1m of funding to progress four “This City” development sites with capacity for 600 homes, 20% of which would be affordable. This City is a wholly owned development company set up by Manchester City Council to increase the number of homes built on council-owned brownfield land. The new projects being progressed are: 150 homes on Hyde Road in east Manchester 175 homes at Monsall in north Manchester 130 homes on Postal Street in the Northern Quarter 150 homes on Grey Mare Lane in east Manchester. The funding will support initial design work and surveying costs ahead of planning applications next year. Masterplanning for the Grey Mare Lane estate has already been completed as part of a partnership between Manchester City Council, Great Place Housing Group, One Manchester and This City to deliver an estate-wide regeneration package. Gavin White, Manchester City Council’s executive member for housing and development, said: “This City is an innovative approach to increasing the number of homes being built in our city. This company allows us to build directly on council-owned brownfield land on our own terms. “Building the homes that our residents need, particularly sustainable and genuinely affordable homes, is challenging, but This City is giving us the opportunity to take control of our own home development and deliver the type of housing we know our city needs on our own terms. “It’s fantastic to see the next tranche of sites come forward quickly with the potential to deliver around 1,500 homes through future phases, and we could see development begin as soon as next year.”