Developer transforms historic site into 59 apartments

Property developer Mandale Homes, working in partnership with ELG Planning, has completed the conversion of a former historic Bolton cotton mill into 59 modern apartments in a strategic intervention area of the town.

The two four-storey mill buildings, which date back to 1890, sit between River Street and Saville Street and have been transformed into 50 one-bed and nine two-bed apartments, featuring an internal gated courtyard for residents with 13 car parking spaces.

A third building accommodates a secure cycle storage and a duplex.

The main external façade of the building was retained with an additional storey created on one block.

The residential development is sited in the strategic Trinity Quarter mixed-use intervention area, one of six in Bolton Council’s £1bn masterplan and also features a 50ft mural featuring the town’s industrial history created by a local graffiti artist.

As well as the Merchants Place scheme, Mandale Homes has submitted a further planning application to transform Bolton’s former Post Office on Deansgate, which closed in August 2018, into 48 apartments with a rooftop extension.

The developer plans to bring the empty building back into re-use for 38 one-bed and 10 two-bed apartment units on the strategic brownfield site.

Richard Harriman, Mandale Homes sales director, said: “We are delighted to complete the regeneration of Merchants Place into modern homes for the local community.

“It has been refreshing to work with Bolton Council in a flexible, adaptable and co-operative way to deliver this residential scheme in a strategically important area in the town.

“It was also particularly rewarding to deliver the scheme in such a stringent and challenging climate due to the pandemic.”

Jeremy Good, ELG Planning director, said: “Merchants Place shows what is possible with a collaborative and flexible approach from Mandale and Bolton Council.

“Mandale has introduced a number of public realm features which have greatly enhanced the surrounding areas and expect it to kickstart future investment in the area.”

Bolton Council deputy leader, Cllr Martyn Cox, said: “Trinity Quarter will be a gateway to the town centre featuring a 100-metre skylink bridge and a £6.5m five-storey Grade A office development as part of Bolton Council’s £1bn town centre masterplan and Mandale’s commitment to providing high-quality and stylish new apartments across two sites in Bolton demonstrates the confidence in developers that we are a town to invest in.

“The Merchants Quarter development is important for Bolton’s future development and provides different types of homes to attract more people to live in Bolton town centre.

“We have a number of different sites to develop and partnership with private sector is key for driving forward our regeneration plans.”