Muse announced as developer for Bolton’s Church Wharf scheme

Bolton Council has this afternoon announced Muse as the developer for the first part of its £1bn Masterplan.

At a session held at MIPIM, the council talked about its ambition to transform the town centre by 2030, with a keynote presentation hosted by TV architect George Clarke.

Stephen Young, director of place at Bolton Council, spoke to TheBusinessDesk.com and said the news had come exactly a decade on from when the scheme was first launched but was held back due to the recession.

Church Wharf is being pitched as a new town centre ‘quarter’ with apartments and town houses, and pedestrian route along the River Croal. It is one of five schemes as part of the whole Masterplan, which will see around £100m spent across all schemes over the next 50 years. Around £30m will be invested in the Church Wharf scheme.

Stephen Young

Young said it was the “obvious” choice to develop the site first because of its proximity to transport links. “This is a key gateway to the town centre and this development will enable people to come and live and work in Bolton while being close to transport links to Manchester. Through this scheme, we can offer town centre living,” he added.

“We are really pleased to announce Muse as the developers, they shared our aspirations for the site.”

Currently, the site has retail units located on it which are, in the main, closed. Young said: “The retail sector is experiencing changing and challenging times and the site is mainly vacant now. The council owns most of the site although there are parcels within in that aren’t. People coming into Bolton from that side of town see the empty retail space as a first impression and we want to change that.

“We are pleased to announce this almost a decade on from launching it. This has always been a priority for Bolton Council and now we need to ensure this happens.”

The viability of the project will now be worked upon before planning permission is sought. It is hoped that the permissions will be granted in the coming 12 months.

Deputy Leader of Bolton Council, Cllr Ebrahim Adia, said: “We are really pleased that Muse will lead on the regeneration of Church Wharf.

“They have a great track record of creating spaces that are both commercially successful and also popular with the public.

“Our town centre vision is bold and exciting but we know it cannot be delivered by the council in isolation.

“To achieve regeneration on the scale we require the help of our private sector partners, and the team at Muse has an excellent track record of delivering high quality creative schemes.

“Church Wharf is a key gateway into Bolton town centre and we want to see regeneration taking place there as soon as possible.”

Director at Muse Developments, Phil Mayall, added: “We are excited to work on a scheme that has so much potential. Bolton is a forward-thinking council that wants to bring real change to the town.

“We have been tracking the project for a long time, so it will be great to begin to get the wheels in motion.

“However, we are at the start of a long journey – at this stage all options will be analysed and considered and we will be working closely with the council to get the plans right for the town.  Local residents, businesses and stakeholders will also be consulted as proposals emerge.”

The council also recently sought feedback on a draft Supplementary Planning Document for the Church Wharf area and the responses to the consultation are now being reviewed.

Young was part of a session this afternoon entitled ‘Bolton: Premiership Development – A Level Playing Field’, which focused on the council’s plans to regenerate the strategic sites around the town centre including the creation of 1,800 homes as a core element. The other scheme discussed as part of the Masterplan were:

Trinity Quarter – a mixed Grade A office and residential development with a new hotel, office block and multi-storey car park.

Cheadle Square – housing and apartments on the former bus station site including student housing on Queen Street, a mixed-used development to complement cultural venues such as the Octagon, Library and Museum, and a pedestrian route between the Town Hall and Le Mans Crescent with Queens Park;

Crompton Place – transforming the empty BHS store with an upper floor food court overlooking Victoria Square, possibly expanding the Primark site and a new pedestrian access between Bradshawgate and Hotel Street;

Croal Valley/Central Street – houses and flats overlooking an improved river frontage with ‘pocket parks’ along the river.

Also on the panel was Andrew ‘Freddie’ Flintoff, former England cricketer and director of Logik Developments, Adam Cunnington, managing director, Public Sector plc (PSP), Caroline Simpson, corporate director for place, Stockport Council, Tom Stannard, director of economy and skills, Oldham Council and Mike Horner, regional director, Muse Developments.

Redevelopment of the five locations is set to  create 1,800 mixed-use homes, about 7,400 jobs and economic activity worth an additional £412m to the Bolton economy up to and beyond 2030.

George Clarke said: “My time as an architect has included much time spent in the North West of England, and the transformational potential of Bolton Council’s Masterplan represents a key element of the wider regeneration of Greater Manchester at the centre of the Northern Powerhouse.”

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