Gateway House ‘on track’ despite HS2 plans
REALTY Estates has stressed its commitment to the redevelopment of Gateway House next to Piccadilly railway station in Manchester after council proposals suggested it should be demolished to make way for a high speed rail terminal.
Architect Hodder + Partners has already drawn up plans for the site and Realty has already struck a deal with London-based Max Serviced Apartments to run the converted building as a 182-bed apart-hotel.
Realty’s head of developments Shahram Sakhdari told TheBusinessDesk.com it was still a live project and had a 20-year life span even if HS2 becomes a reality.
He said: “We’re going to respond to the consultation and express our views about Gateway House. As far as we’re concerned Gateway House is a live development project as approved by the city council.
“We’re getting on with that scheme and the life cycle of the current development is within the scale of the HS2 station, if it comes. So it doesn’t really affect our current development project. There’s time for the whole investment cycle to be completed and for Realty to make a return on investment in 20 years.”
A planning framework drawn up by Bennetts Associates for council shows the site of Gateway House as a terminal for high speed trains which will be arriving in Manchester in 2032 if the plan goes ahead.
The council wants this investment to trigger a massive regeneration around the station that will see the creation of 14.4m sq ft of new floorspace, including 6.7m sq ft of commercial, 4.3m sq ft of residential and 1m sq ft of retail and leisure facilities across 140 acres.
According to these plans Gateway will not only make way for the new station but also a new road running along the high speed viaduct that will link London Road, and the wider regeneration, with East Manchester. Realty’s plan also includes a 40,000 sq ft, seven-storey office block behind Gateway House and it is not clear from the council’s framework if this could be incorporated into proposals for more office space.
