Middlewood Locks scheme revealed
PLANS for the £700m residential and commercial Middlewood Locks development in Manchester will be unveiled today.
The McCabe family’s Scarborough Group International, the international real estate investor and developer, revealed the plans for the 24-acre site at the western gateway to Manchester central business district.
At a launch party attended by Salford City Mayor Ian Stewart, Scarborough will reveal its latest plans, images and timetable for Middlewood Locks, which received planning consent in March 2015 from Salford City Council to deliver a new mixed use community of around 2,000 new homes and up to 750,000sq ft of commercial development space.
Following receipt of planning consent, Scarborough is now working up a detailed planning application for the first phases of the development which will comprise the development of 550 homes, some 29,000sq ft of commercial space and extensive new public realm, in the form of canal side footpaths and cycle ways that will connect directly into the city centre.
The application will be submitted in Q3 2015 with a planning decision expected in Q4 2015. This would then enable Scarborough to start on site towards the end of this year.
Scarborough has also just appointed Knight Frank, WHR and LSH as lettings agents for the commercial part of the development and JLL has been appointed on the residential investment side.
Middlewood Locks is being developed by FairBriar International, a joint venture between Scarborough, Top Spring International Holdings Limited, a Hong Kong-listed real estate developer in the People’s Republic of China, and Metro Holdings Limited, a Singapore-listed property development and investment group.
Middlewood Locks, which is centred around three large basins of the Manchester Bolton and Bury Canal in Salford, will provide a vibrant new community with a total of up to 2,000 new homes along with around 750,000sq ft of space for mixed commercial uses including offices, hotel, shops, delis, restaurants, a convenience store and gym. The development is ideally located just a short walk from the central business district and retail amenities of Manchester.
There will be a variety of home types and sizes available to help cater for a wide mix of occupiers from first time buyers, families to ‘empty nesters’. The homes will be designed in a way to make the most of the landscaping incorporating private and public spaces. Part of the landscaping strategy is to connect the green spaces with the canal incorporating a woodland theme.
Lee Savage, development director of Scarborough, said: “Middlewood Locks will be a first-class, mixed-use community in one of the UK’s most exciting new areas.
“The development is situated in what will be a new business destination for the city as well as a sought-after residential neighbourhood due to its proximity to Manchester city centre, MediaCity UK and the impact of other wider regeneration activities that are taking place in the Salford area.”
The Mayor said: “I am absolutely delighted to see the Scarborough Group and their partners bring this outstanding new development forward.
“This is a unique site with so much potential to deliver new homes, commercial opportunities and new jobs whilst maximising our riverside and canal assets.
“It is one more step towards the extensive transformation of this part of the regional centre which will enable the cities of Salford and Manchester to deliver the growth necessary to meet the economic challenges we face at a national level.”
