New name for landmark former BBC site revealed
THE landmark former BBC regional headquarters on Oxford Road will be called Circle Square.
Comprising 1.1million sq ft of commercial, residential and public space development, a planning application for Circle Square will be submitted on January by joint venture partners Bruntwood and Select Property.
The pair said the new name is an “intentional contradiction that invites curiosity and perfectly depicts the vision for the area”.
A series of public consultations are being held this week ahead of submitting the detailed planning application to the city council .
If approved Circle Square will deliver a value of more than £360m while creating over 2,000 jobs.
Central to the site will be two spaces designed to encourage a blend of people and businesses to come together. The Green and a 20,000 sq ft pavilion will provide additional events space, offering huge opportunities for a wide variety of staged and pop-up events.
The 617,848 sq ft residential space, which spans across four state-of-the-art buildings, will be operated under Select’s Affinity Living brand and the 390,000 sq ft of commercial space will be delivered by Bruntwood.
The ground floors of both the residential and commercial spaces are being converted into an 82,000 sq ft retail destination, designed to attract a vibrant mix of independent and complementary retail and leisure operators to the area.
Mark Stott, chief executive of Select Property Group, said: “With its unmatched location, superb outdoor spaces and variety of people who will be living, working and visiting, Circle Square promises to become an exciting new community in Manchester.
“Both Select and Bruntwood share a strong commitment to putting customers at the heart of everything we do and we’re confident that the plans being submitted reflect this desire.”
Chris Oglesby, his counterpart at Bruntwood, added: “Circle Square will evolve into a fully integrated residential and commercial neighbourhood, contributing to the city’s continued economic and cultural success at the heart of Corridor Manchester.
“It will be surrounded by leading centres of knowledge, art, music and innovation and will offer a compelling reason for existing talent to stay in Manchester, whilst attracting new talent to study, live, work and play here.”
