Plans for Manchester's former Central Retail Park take step forward- council says talks in 'final stages'

Negotiations to start the redevelopment of the former Central Retail Park are in their final stages, the council has announced.

The former retail park, which closed for good in 2019, has been subject to a long-running dispute over its future — with campaigners calling for the 10-and-a-half acre site to become a park after it was proposed to temporarily become a car park. However, the town hall has rejected calls for it to become parkland.

Instead, the authority has chosen to use the land for a complex of offices with green spaces open to the public in the same site. This plan, which was agreed in March 2023, is now close to becoming a reality after council bosses announced on Friday (January 12) they were ‘in late-stage negotiations to begin the redevelopment of part of the former retail park by the Government Property Agency (GPA)’.

Once complete, it will provide space for 7,000 civil servants housed in a ‘new digital campus and office space’. A formal planning application to fulfil that ambition is expected later this summer.

“We have big ambitions for this site, and it has the potential to accommodate thousands of jobs, create a new green public space and gateway through to Cotton Field Park for the first time, while developing highly sustainable office space – and in time create an ecosystem that will support new businesses to grow in the future,” said council leader Bev Craig in announcing the move.

“This is great news for Manchester, and we are working closely with the GPA to bring these proposals forward. In them we have found a development partner that shares our vision for the site, which supports the continued growth of Manchester through sustainable, high-quality development. It is very welcome that we can finally bring this long-term brownfield piece of land back into active use and marks the beginning of the end for the 20-year regeneration story that has transformed this corner of our city centre.” 

The corner of the city Coun Craig referred to is Ancoats and New Islington, with other projects in the area including a £30 million public realm investment project on Ancoats Green, the construction of office complex Electric Park on New Islington Green, and new affordable housing built by the council’s housing company This City in the area, with more homes coming through for private rent.