A newly formed consortium has launched a search for finance and development partners for a £750m redevelopment of Manchester’s Piccadilly.
A first phase of offices and hotels to the north of the River Medlock, plus housing and a park to the south, is being worked up over the next 12 months.
London & Continental Railways, Manchester city council and Transport for Greater Manchester have this week agreed to pool their land in the area to capitalise on the HS2 and Northern Hub transport plans. The agreement means preliminary negotiations with potential partners can now start.
The partners have proposed an 807,000 sq ft office scheme, along with 1,300 homes, a 350-bedroom hotel, plus shops and leisure uses in the existing railway arches, in a project dubbed the Mayfield Quarter.
Discussions are also under way with the Government Property Unit to take up to 430,000 sq ft of prelets at the project.
The partnership said it will launch a procurement process for the 12-acre site once the -masterplan is cleared.
The Mayfield strategic regeneration framework was endorsed by the council in January 2014, setting out a loose plan for a new gateway to the city.
A new HS2 station is expected to arrive in the area in 2033, while Network Rail’s Northern Hub project to improve connectivity across the region completes in 2019.
