Vision of city centre until 2018 under microscope
MANCHESTER City Council bosses are set to unveil a strategic plan for the future development of the city centre over the next three years.
The vision for the city centre as a place to invest, work, live, shop and enjoy will be discussed at an executive meeting on tomorrow (Wednesday, July 29).
It is of Manchester as a world class city as competitive as the best international cities across the globe.
The strategy also looks to root Manchester’s position as the main economic hub in the region, and help rebalance the economic dominance of London and the South East through major investment, to support growth of the city and the city region.
The document celebrates key achievements since 2009 – including the completion of the first phase NOMA development, the delivery of HOME, and the refurbishment of the Town Hall complex and enhancement of Central Library and St Peter’s Square.
The achievements will be continued with future key investments – from significant transformations at NOMA, Corridor Manchester (Oxford Road), St John’s (Ex-Granada site), First Street and Piccadilly, to a more considered approach to attracting investment and improvement in neighbourhoods such as Great Jackson Street or the Northern Quarter.
The city centre has expanded to meet rising demand for commercial, leisure and retail space.
This expansion has allowed stronger connections with new vibrant neighbourhoods, including NOMA to the north, First Street to the south and Ancoats and New Islington to the east – the latter with major housing investment already confirmed through the Manchester Life project.
The population of the city centre has trebled in the last decade – now almost 25,000 people – and more than 140,000 people work in the city centre, with further increases expected over the next five years.
Manchester City Council leader Sir Richard Leese said: “The city centre is the beating heart of Manchester’s economy, and so it requires a considered strategy that provides the framework to support our objectives.
“To do this we must be ambitious and position ourselves as a global city to attract major national and international investment – securing long-term growth and employment.
“Of course, the other side of this strategy is ensuring that the thousands of people who live in the city centre are provided for with attractive neighbourhoods and good quality, sustainable housing and open public spaces – with the infrastructure in place to make travel into and across the city centre as easy as possible.”
