Property briefs Former Conservative Club morphs into apartments & more
WREN Properties, the Manchester letting agent, has completed its £1.5m redevelopment of the former Chorlton Conservative Club in to 13 two-bed apartments.
The property in the Chorlton Conservation area was bought from receivers for £450,000 two years ago.
The clock tower is now working once again after 40 years.
Wren is also pushing ahead with its redevelopment of Salisbury House on Princess Street, Manchester into 31 apartments.
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LASALLE Investment Management, the global real estate investment manager, has agreed a new 25-year lease with JD Gyms at Rochdale Exchange in Greater Manchester.
JD Gyms is part of JD Sports Fashion. This new agreement sees the award-winning fitness chain opening its first branch in Greater Manchester in fully refurbished premises at the Exchange. 
Opening in April 2016, JD Gyms has invested £1.5m in the fit out of its 26,000 sq ft unit which includes state-of the-art equipment, stylish changing facilities, and offers users 2 hours’ convenient free parking.
Located in the centre of the town Rochdale Exchange is 13.5 miles north of Manchester city centre with Huddersfield 20 miles to the east. Anchored by Beales, Boots and River Island, the mixed-use scheme comprises a total 290,000 square feet across two levels.
Charlotte Watkins, asset manager, LaSalle Investment Management, said: “We have enjoyed a period of tremendous growth and success in the region, underlined by our commitment to invest in the future development of this scheme.
“The agreement with JD Gyms to locate its first premises in Greater Manchester at Rochdale Exchange demonstrates the success of our proactive asset management as well as continued investment into the centre, ensuring it meets the needs of the local catchment.”
LaSalle was advised by Barker Proudlove and Green & Partners.
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CIVIL engineering projects from around Greater Manchester are up against the region’s best new projects at the Institution of Civil Engineers North West Annual Awards this week.
The £44m Victoria Station redevelopment is a strong contender in the Large Project category – often seen as the jewel in the crown at the prestigious awards.
Victoria faces competition from the £12.4m Jackson’s Edge reservoir development near Stockport, carried out by United Utilities, whose projects dominated last year’s North West Civil Engineering Awards, carrying away the Large Project, Medium Project and Community Awards.
At the other end of the scale, bids for the Small Project Award include the £500,000 improvement of Hyde Central Station and an imaginative and unusual £80,000 underpass redevelopment by Transport for Greater Manchester in Rochdale.
A £500,000 Forestry Commission project beside the River Irwell in Prestwich to stabilise land to protect homes is also up for the Small Project Award.
The Rochdale Underpass, which has restored Victorian design features while opening up better access between Metrolink, Rochdale Station and its park-and-ride car park, is also up for the Community Award, which last year was won by the Dove Stone Community Hydropower Scheme in Oldham.
And Victoria Station’s restored heritage features have put it in line for the newly-introduced Civil Engineering Heritage Award – where stiff competition comes from a wide range of historic civil engineering feats from all over North West England and the Isle of Man, including Blackpool Tower.
The decisions will be announced and awards presented during a prestigious dinner at Carlisle’s Halston Hotel on Friday by Sir John Armitt, current President of ICE, former head of Network Rail but probably best known as the man who delivered the 2012 London Olympics.
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VELOCITY Leisure is set to open its second trampoline park in Wigan this summer following an impressive £1.5m investment.
Located on Caxton Close, the new site will span across 46,000sq ft making it one of the largest of its kind in Europe.
the venue will become Velocity Leisure’s fourth site in total, adding to its ever-expanding portfolio of ventures within the leisure industry.
Managing Director of Velocity Leisure Steven Cosgrove said: “When we opened the original Velocity Trampoline Park in Widnes in 2015, we could never have predicted its popularity.
“Aside from our free-jump passes and regular activities, we are receiving increasingly high demand for our unique children’s parties, which is why my wife and business partner Cheryl and I, decided to begin the search for a second site.”
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THE development of Alderley Park is continuing with Bruntwood bringing 100,000 sq ft of award-winning office space to market.
Parklands is a self-contained, purpose-built office building, overlooking the Park’s farm and woodland.
Spread over five floors, it can accommodate space needs from 5,000sq ft up to the full building and is the first commercial office space to become available at the Park.
Ready for occupation from April it signals a significant step in the development of the site with further office, laboratory and light manufacturing space coming available throughout 2016, as the refurbishment of a further 300,000 sq ft is completed.
Sharon Johnson, head of regional sales at Bruntwood, said: “We’re excited to be bringing Parklands to market it’s of such a high quality that a building like this is an extremely rare find outside of a city centre market.
“We are looking to attract a range of office occupiers who are seeking the beautiful countryside setting whilst benefiting from the amenities and community that a site of this scale has to offer.”
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MANCHESTER property developer Nikal has submitted a reserved matters planning application for more than 600 high quality apartments at Exchange Square in Birmingham’s Eastside, representing a significant boost to the city’s PRS residential market.
Nikal, the developer behind the proposed £70m mixed-use Altair scheme in Altrincham town centre, intends to develop 603 apartments at Exchange Square, split across three blocks of 26, 15 and eight stories on the prominent plot, close to the proposed HS2 Birmingham city centre terminus.
Apartments will feature a mix of one, two and three bedroom units with a small number of studios.
Designed with high levels of quality finishes throughout by twice Stirling Prize-shortlisted architectural practice, Stephenson Studio the apartments are expected to attract a wider range of professionals underpinned by the city’s growing financial services sector.
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GREAT Places Housing Group is celebrating after five of its developments were shortlisted for a prestigious building award.
The Manchester-based housing association has made the final categories in the regional Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Awards 2016.
The awards showcase the most inspirational initiatives and developments in land, property, construction and the environment during the last 12 months.
Shortlisted for the regeneration of the year award (Yorkshire and Humber), Great Places’ Richmond Park development in Sheffield has successfully tackled housing issues and anti-social behaviour to create an affordable, sustainable and cohesive community.
Foxhall Village, a £50m regeneration scheme which has delivered a contemporary, vibrant urban community in the heart of Blackpool, and Jubilee Street in Salford have also made the north west regeneration shortlist.
Hazelhurst, a £4.7m flagship development in Ramsbottom, Bury with a specialist day care centre for young adults with learning and physical disabilities and Project Maltravers, with its vision of creating a ‘new face’ and gateway for Wybourn in Sheffield have been shortlisted as residential developments of the year.
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CONLON Construction has completed an 11-month project to provide new premises for West Didsbury CE Primary School in Manchester.
The scheme of an undisclosed sum, designed by Lovelock Mitchell Architects, saw Conlon utilise the latest low environmental impact design to deliver purpose-built premises for pupils, staff and local community groups.
The new build has merged with the refurbished 1990s section of the existing building to provide classrooms and a creative studio reflecting both the school’s faith ethos and providing facilities for the local community.
The project also included the complete demolition and removal of the dated and degraded 1960s CLASP building and three-storey residential block.
The majority of the new school (located on Central Road in West Didsbury) has been built off site using modular construction methods to ensure minimal disruption to local residents.
Providing much needed space, the project is the first phase of seven-year plan to establish a 420-pupil primary school, with two reception forms to be added each year until 2022.
Matt Whitehead, head teacher at West Didsbury CE Primary School, said: “The school has an excellent reputation for providing first-class education and these state-of-the-art facilities will bolster academic opportunities for generations to come.”
“This year we received 205 applications for just 30 places so the expansion, by way of a new school, is much needed and we will now be able to offer that same academic, creative and spiritual development to a further 60 children each year”.
Michael Conlon, chairman at Conlon Construction, added: “We have substantial experience in the education sector and are pleased another one of our school projects has been delivered on time and within budget.”
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BLACKPOOL Entertainment Company has secured a 1,500sq ft unit at the town’s Talbot Gateway Central Business District in a 10-year deal.
The unit is located at the ground floor corner of the scheme’s five-storey office block, Number One Bickerstaffe Square.
Providing hot and cold beverages and freshly-made food, Tower Coffee Company will be serving Coffee Republic beverages, a brand which was once voted to have the best cappuccino in London.
Greg Ball, development surveyor at Muse, said: “The scheme is now attracting a lot of interest from occupiers which is testament to the quality and location of the Talbot Gateway.
“Tower Coffee Company will enhance the tenant mix and retail offering for this part of Blackpool.
“With the recent opening of Mr Basrai’s World Cuisine, a letting agreed for a gym and strong interest from a number of other national operators, momentum has built very quickly in the early part of 2016 and we’re hoping to make further announcements in the very near future.”
Cllr Fred Jackson, Blackpool Council’s cabinet member for municipal assets, said: “With each new business that opens in the Talbot Gateway you see the area getting busier and busier.
“I am delighted that another unit will soon be occupied attracting even more people to this area of the town centre.
”More than 1,000 people work out of the units that are already occupied so I am sure that a coffee shop will be hugely popular.
“ This latest deal means that approximately 70% of retail space available at Talbot Gateway CBD has now been let.”
Just three units and a floor of office space remain which are being marketed by Montagu Evans, Duxburys Commercial and Cushman & Wakefield.
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PROPERTY management and surveying firm Scanlans has moved to new offices in Manchester city centre.
The firm has relocated from 75 Mosley Street to Boulton House on Chorlton Street.
It has taken 4,600sq ft of space to house its 40-strong head office team.
Scanlans has taken a seven-year lease at Boulton House, whose landlord is Regional Properties.
The offices have been refurbished with new lighting, air conditioning and décor. A kitchen area and meeting rooms have also been fitted out.
Paul Westwell, a partner and head of commercial at law firm Bromleys, advised Scanlans on the relocation.
Scanlans operates a property management division which specialises in residential block management. Its portfolio includes Manchester developments Granby Village, Edge Street and Smithfield Buildings.
The firm also has a surveying consultancy with a focus on commercial, residential and retail property sites throughout the north west.
Scanlans also has offices in London, the Midlands and Yorkshire.
The Manchester move was handled by partner Ian Stanistreet, who heads its property management team in the city.
He said the relocation creates room for Scanlans to grow its head office team as the property market improves.
“Our management portfolio has continued to grow in size over the past few years and, as the property market improves, we are seeing an even greater level of activity for both our management and surveying divisions,” he added.
“We looked at several sites in Manchester before choosing Boulton House. It keeps us in the heart of the city, where we have been for many years, and enables us to provide continuity of service to our clients while having space to add to our team in line with market demand.”
Westwell said: “It’s been a pleasure working with Ian and the team in completing this transaction.
“Having worked with Scanlans for several years, we were aware of the firm’s requirement for new office space.
“The office market in Manchester is highly competitive and we were pleased to assist Scanlans in securing these new premises to enable the firm to continue to expand.”
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BIRKENHEAD residents and businesses are being invited to take part in a groundbreaking conversation about the town’s future.
Move Ahead Birkenhead kicks off with the launch of a website and three-day public exhibition at The Pyramids Shopping Centre where plans and initial ideas will be revealed.
It is being led by Ion Developments (formerly Neptune Developments) and design partners, and is the initial phase of a strategy to “re-imagine and regenerate” Birkenhead town centre.
Ion managing director Steve Parry said: “This is a slightly different approach to consultation.
“We have very specific plans to redevelop the Europa Boulevard area in partnership with the council to create a new leisure and evening economy destination within the town centre.
“However, this is only the initial phase of a regeneration strategy that the Council is looking to develop and implement.
“There is an opportunity to take a much wider look and begin to think about more radical and transformational change. The town has some incredible assets and opportunities.”
The Europa Boulevard project involves the creation of a new pool and the redevelopment of the existing Europa Pool site to create a leisure destination with a cluster of family restaurants and a Travelodge hotel around the Vue cinema.
The development aims to add a vital missing element in Birkenhead’s offer as well as expanding the town centre and beginning to improve links to the Wirral Waters development.
The public exhibition is being held inside The Pyramids shopping centre at a unit close to the Food Court this week on Thursday (February 25) and Friday (February 26) from 10am-6pm and on Saturday (February 27) from 10am-5pm.
The Move Ahead Birkenhead process is being supported by Ion’s design team that includes the internationally acclaimed Dutch urban design specialists MVRDV. The Rotterdam-based practice will be in Birkenhead this week and project leader Jan Knikker – whose partner is a Birkenhead native – is looking forward to helping the town fulfill its potential.
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A CARE home in East Lancashire has undergone refurbishment works to expand its physical disability service provisions.
Crawhsaw Hall Medical Centre & Nursing Home has added a substantial extension to the premises on Burnley Road, Crawshawbooth with funding support from NatWest. Several new jobs have been created which are currently being recruited for.
Local building contractor Optic Pine was contracted by parent company Crawshaw Hall Healthcare to carry out the works which comprises a new floor, side extension, complete reconfiguration of all floors and external landscaping to provide a state of the art specialist physical disability unit providing 24 hour nursing care to adults of all ages and of all medical and physical needs.
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OREGA has launched its first ever co-working space in Salford hub MediaCity UK.
Situated on the 12th floor of the Blue Tower, Orega has created a collaborative office space suitable for freelancers, start-ups, entrepreneurs and big thinkers.
Offering shared workstations, a contemporary business lounge and the option to hire out well-designed meeting rooms, The Blue Room is the perfect option for those starting their business venture.
Occupiers have the option to rent a shared desk for 10 days a month with the added bonus of receiving all of the perks of an Orega Virtual Office or rent their own permanent desk with 24/7, 365-day access to The Blue Room – all contracts start from a minimum of three months.
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19 Market Street in Altrincham, Greater Manchester is fully let following the expansion of Direct Airport Investment.
It was the first company to take space in the refurbished building and has now taken the final suite of 546 sq ft occupying a total of 903 sq ft. The leases will run concurrently from January 1 for 12 months.
The 1,430sq ft building was recently renovated to provide bespoke serviced offices.
