Chancellor George Osborne has unveiled plans for a £659m ‘Airport City’ – the first of its kind in the UK – at the heart of the Manchester Airport Enterprise Zone, designated last year.
The 150-acre regeneration scheme involves the provision of some 5m sq ft of new development.
The detailed ‘stage two’ master plan for Airport City, just revealed, proposes the creation of two core Airport City zones. The first is a development area next to the airport’s existing railway station and north of the M56, which will focus on hotel, office, retail and advanced manufacturing uses – while a second area adjacent to the existing cargo centre at Junction 6 of the M56, will focus on freight and logistics.
In total, over the next 12-15 years, Airport City plans to deliver some 1.5m sq ft of offices; 650,000 sq ft advanced manufacturing floor space; up to 100,000 sq ft of retail and leisure; around 2,500 hotel beds and some 1.4m sq ft of logistics and warehousing floor space.
The main central business district of Airport City to the north of the M56 will be linked to the airport terminals by a series of wide, landscaped ‘green bridges’ based on New York’s elevated urban park, the Highline. This will ensure that every part of the northern Airport City zone is within an eight-minute walk from the airport’s coach, bus and rail hub.
A landscaped ‘Central Park’ area more than 800m long, featuring a number of pavilions and a large-scale event space, will form the centrepiece of Airport City, along with traditional elements of a conventional city centre: shops, coffee houses, bars and restaurants.
Manchester Airports Group is currently preparing to undertake the first stage delivery of the project. This will focus on key road elements, landscaping, infrastructure and utility provision.
Roger Milne
19 January 2011
