Work on £70m scheme in Manchester grinds to halt in wake of police investigation

The Residence

Work on a £70m scheme in Manchester has come to halt following a high-profile police investigation.

The scheme to build the luxury flats on the border between Manchester and Salford was being led by developer Elliot Group.

It is one of a number of projects which has been affected by the arrest of property developer Elliot Lawless and Liverpool City Council’s regeneration chief Nick Kavanagh last December.

Mr Kavanagh was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud and misconduct in a public office and Mr Lawless was arrested on suspicion of conspiracy to defraud, bribery and corruption.

Elliot Lawless

Neither men have been charged but two schemes in Liverpool have been halted.

The Elliot Group is involved in around 20 developments across the North West.

Schemes include the £170m redevelopment of Heap’s Rice Mill, the £100m Wolstenholme Square, the £100m Aura student scheme on the edge of the Knowledge Quarter, and the 1,000-apartment scheme Infinity on Leeds Street.

Funder Maslow Capital have pulled out of the Aura and Infinity schemes which means they have ground to a halt.

And it has since been confirmed that work has halted at The Residence in Manchester.

The scheme is made up of apartment two blocks close to the River Irwell.

A spokesperson for the Elliot Group said: “We have called a moratorium while we finalise funding for the project’s build-out, a task that has been made more difficult, of course, by the police’s ongoing investigation.”

“Institutional funds are waiting for the investigation’s conclusion before re-engaging with us.”

 

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