Build an urban Alton Towers in Manchester, says Elliott

MANCHESTER should rejuvenate the “fragmented zone” beyond the city centre by making space for urban farms, an “urban Alton Towers” and a floating village.

Speaking at an event on sustainable business organised by city centre management company Cityco, architect Gavin Elliott outlined ways in which Manchester could become a “more fantastic place to live”.

Mr Elliott, the head of BDP’s studio in Manchester, said the city centre and the outlying suburbs are well-established, but there is potential in fragmented inner city areas where land is available and in need of redevelopment.

He listed 17 ideas such as: creating a floating village at Pomona Docks; copying the New York High Line by turning a disused viaduct into a green walkway; opening urban farms that would deliver fresh produce to city centre markets; a botanical garden and zoo in the Irk Valley, east of the centre; a museum quarter; and an urban amusement park.

“I’m not suggesting we should bulldoze sites and turn them into parks, but there’s definitely something in this,” he said.

The event also heard from Chris Shearlock, sustainable development manager at the Co-op and Jo Lynch, sustainability project manager at Manchester College.