Global property agents DTZ has been commissioned to find an investment partner for a half-a-million sq ft development in the centre of Manchester.
The city council has already signalled its approval for the regeneration of an area adjacent to Manchester’s Oxford Road railway station. DTZ said the site has the potential for up to 500,000sq ft of development including offices, a hotel, residential properties and leisure and retail space.
Bordered on one side by the station and railway line, with Oxford Street and Whitworth Streets on the others, the land encompasses the Cornerhouse cinema, which is moving to the nearby First Street development, and two public houses.
Oxford Road is Manchester’s second busiest railway station, after Piccadilly, and occupies a strategic location at one end of the Manchester Corridor, with the ongoing First Street schemes to the west and the new business quarter centred on St Peter’s Square to the north.
Formalised in the city plan, Manchester Corridor was envisaged as a way for universities, hospitals and private businesses to work together to improve Oxford Road’s appearance and make it a more formal “gateway” into the city centre from the south.
The city authority said it wants to see “the wider regeneration of this part of the city centre, that would improve the profile of the station and area around the station; create a mixed-use destination and new setting for the station; and improve the rail user experience.”
“We are seeking a development partner with a proven track record in city centre regeneration, preferably with experience in development adjacent to an operational railway line,” said Ken Bishop, the DTZ senior director in charge of the project.
“This opportunity has great potential to make a significant intervention and contribution to the regeneration of this part of the regional centre.”
Further along Oxford Road, the University of Manchester has unveiled plans to build a new hotel and businesses school in a three-way development deal with the property firm Bruntwood and the M&L Hospitality Group.
The 19-storey development will include 326 hotel rooms — aimed at “high end” visitors to the university, Manchester Business School (MBS) and the city centre — plus an executive education complex for the business school.
Neil Maxwell is chief executive office at M&L Hospitality. “We are always exploring investment opportunities that have the potential to deliver stable and attractive returns,” he explained.
“This hotel will be a valuable campus amenity for MBS, the university and other nearby facilities, such as the Central Manchester University Hospitals, the Manchester Science Park and the many cultural assets and arts venues along the corridor.”
