Man City's £300m Etihad expansion among latest Manchester plans approved by planning committee

Plans to build accommodation for almost 1,500 students across Manchester have been approved. But the planning committee has voted against a controversial student block for a third time as the campaign against the scheme continues.

The 11-storey tower planned on the site of the former Gamecock pub in Hulme has been knocked back by councillors again after local residents repeated their concerns about more student accommodation being built in the area. But plans to house 261 students near Whitworth Park were approved despite objections from residents’ groups about a nine-storey tower in the proposal.

The committee also approved plans to build three towers near Piccadilly Station which will accommodate 1,224 student beds. Manchester City’s £300m expansion of the Etihad Stadium was also given the green light.

Plans for a 14-storey office block which involves demolishing a Victorian building in the city centre were also given the go ahead despite objections from national heritage bodies. And a seven-storey office and laboratory at Manchester Science Park was also approved after the developer behind it assured the committee that no animal testing would take place in the building.

Councillors also approved 22 new affordable homes in Higher Blackley. Here are all of the decisions made by the planning committee on Thursday, July 27.

Rejected: 11-storey student block in Hulme

The controversial student block in Boundary Lane, which has already been rejected by the committee twice, dominated the first hour of the meeting. Local residents – many of whom have been involved in the Block the Block campaign opposing the 11-storey tower which started in 2020 – and their elected representatives voiced their objections at the town hall meeting.

Last October, councillors voted against the development after three floors were removed from the proposal. Since then, developer Curlew has added three more accessible parking spaces to the scheme, but the height of the development which features 197 rooms for students remained unchanged.

Roy Bennett, who lives in Hopton Court, told the committee: “We couldn’t get our heads around why this has come back up again.” The committee voted against the application by a margin of six votes to three, but this is not the final decision as town hall planners now have an opportunity to address concerns.

Approved: Student flats with nine-storey tower near Whitworth Park

Earlier this month, councillors said they wanted to see the site off Oxford Road where more student accommodation is planned before making a decision. It comes after the planning committee was told the nine-storey tower which features in the proposal would be ‘oppressive and overbearing’ for residents.

Residents associations, tenants unions and a heritage group have objected to the plans which involve converting listed Victorian villas. Speaking as a local resident, Hulme councillor Ekua Bayunu told the committee that some families are still living in the properties on the site where the development is planned.

However, council bosses assured the committee that any families affected by the development would be rehoused. Some councillors were not convinced, but most of the committee supported the application with six voting in favour.

Approved: Three towers for 1,224 students near Piccadilly Station

The Chandos Hall student accommodation building and a nursery in Echo Street were demolished after planning permission was granted for three towers on the site in 2018. But the project stalled due to the pandemic.

Three years on, fresh plans for 27, 21 and 16 storey buildings on the Echo Street site were submitted to the council. Unlike the previous proposal, the latest application would be exclusively for students with 1,224 bedrooms available of which 196 would be offered at a discounted ‘affordable rent’.

Developer IQ Student Accommodation said the scheme should be ready to open by the 2027 academic year. The committee approved it unanimously.

Approved: Demolition of Victorian building for 14-storey office block

The committee visited the listed buildings where a 14-storey office block is planned before the meeting. National heritage groups have objected to the scheme which involves demolishing the listed Reedham House built in 1849.

However, council planning chief Dave Roscoe told the committee that there’s ‘very little’ left from the original building which was heavily altered before it was bombed in the Second World War. Under the plans, some Grade-II listed buildings would be retained with 4,849 sqm of office floorspace created.

Mr Roscoe said building the new office block will fund the restoration and refurbishment of other buildings in the Kings Street West site. The committee approved the application – but it must now be signed off by the government.

Approved: Seven-storey office and lab in Manchester Science Park

Plans for a seven-storey office and laboratory south of the city centre were also approved by the committee. The site between Greenheys Lane and Pencroft Way is currently home to the Greenheys building, two terraced houses – one of which is a takeaway – a furniture store and a car park.

UK Biobank, described as an ‘internationally significant health research organisation’, would be the ‘anchor tenant’ with the rest of the building to be occupied by other organisations in the life science and healthcare sectors. Developer Bruntwood assured the committee that no animal testing would take place in the building after concerns were raised by a local resident.

Local councillors also raised concerns about the impact of construction on residents living near Manchester Science Park. But the £52m scheme, which is expected to create around 730 jobs, was approved by committee members.

Approved: 22 affordable homes in Higher Blackley

The plans to build eight apartments and 14 houses on the site of a former nursery in Longhurst Road were welcomed by the planning committee. The development by housing association Great Places is part of a Manchester council project which aims to create hundreds of new affordable homes.

Project 500 involves the local authority selling small plots of land it owns to affordable housing providers at a discount for development. Earlier this month, the committee approved plans in Openshaw which are also part of the project.

Speaking in favour of the Higher Blackley scheme, former planning chair Basil Curley said the scheme is ‘good news’ for the city. The proposal was approved.

Approved: £300m expansion of the Etihad Stadium

Plans to extend the Etihad’s north stand – which would increase the total capacity to almost 62,000 – were also approved. The current club shop will be knocked down to make way for an eight-storey building with a new store, ticket office and museum as well as offices for small businesses and start-ups.

A nine-storey hotel with 391 bedrooms and 10 suites will also be built next to a new fan zone and event space for up to 3,000 people. Plans to expand the  stadium were approved in 2014, but only the south stand was extended.

The committee welcomed the development and the investment it will bring to East Manchester. Labour councillor John Hughes said: “I support this project – and not just because I’m a City fan, but because this is an absolutely brilliant scheme for the Manchester community, including the extra jobs it will bring.”