Spinningfields

Spinningfields
Hardman Square
Metropolitan borough	Manchester
Metropolitan county	Greater Manchester
Region	North West
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	MANCHESTER
Postcode district	M3
Dialling code	0161
Police	Greater Manchester
Fire	Greater Manchester
Ambulance	North West
EU Parliament	North West England
UK Parliament	Manchester Central
List of places UK England Greater Manchester

Spinningfields is a business, retail and residential development in Manchester, England in the west of the city centre, between Deansgate and the River Irwell. Developed by Allied London Properties, the £1.5 billion project consists of 20 new buildings, totalling approximately 430,000 sq metres of commercial, residential and retail space. It takes its name from Spinningfield, a narrow street which ran westwards from Deansgate. In 1968 Spinningfield and the area to the south were turned into Spinningfield Square, an open paved area.

History

The proposal to create a central business district originated in 1997 when Allied London purchased a number of buildings around the John Rylands Library. Allied London executive, Mike Ingall was convinced of site's regeneration potential and Manchester City Council was keen to redevelop the city centre after the 1996 Manchester bombing.

The development, named from a narrow street which ran westwards from Deansgate, is bounded by Bridge Street to the north, Quay Street to the south, Deansgate to the east, and the River Irwell to the west. There will be 20 buildings in the development spread over 6 acres (24,000 m²). By 2008 many had been completed and others were under construction or in the planning stages. The structural, civil and geo-environmental engineers were Capita Symonds Structures based in Cheadle Hulme.

The financial crisis of 2007–2010 resulted in Allied London almost leaving the development half-completed but the company reached an agreement with the city council who bought the freeholds of 1 and 2 Hardman Square and 2 and 3 Hardman Boulevard which allowed the development to proceed. Deborah Linton of the Manchester Evening News claimed the cost of the freeholds would be in the region of £15 million; and it later emerged that £15.9 million was paid.

Allied London marketed Spinningfields retail area as a "Knightsbridge of the North" after letting 2 Spinningfields Square (renamed 1 The Avenue) to Emporio Armani & Armani Collezioni. The scheme's flagship thoroughfare, The Avenue, struggled to attract stores and others who showed interest, such as Paul Smith, pulled out leading to the opening being delayed from 2008 to autumn 2010.

In July 2010, Allied London scrapped the 'Manchester Hotel' project which would have replaced Manchester House. Instead a retail and office development incorporating a retail arcade linking Bridge Street to The Avenue would be created by reconfiguring the building.

Present day

1 The Avenue

The Manchester Civil Justice Centre is the tallest building in Spinningfields and the fifth tallest in Manchester

The area is dominated by commercial office developments and has been described as the Canary Wharf of the North; the Financial Times has noted, "London has Canary Wharf and Paris has La Défense, Manchester has its own modern financial centre in the form of Spinningfields". Its anchor tenants include Regus, Barclays, Beachcroft, Deloitte, HSBC Bank, Grant Thornton International, Guardian Media Group and Royal Bank of Scotland. Flagship buildings include 1 The Avenue and the Civil Justice Centre.

Across from 1 Hardman Boulevard is 2 Hardman Street, occupied by Deloitte and, after the Manchester Evening News moved out in 2010, DWF.^{[citation needed]} 3 Hardman Street was constructed on the Manchester Evening News site. The 16-storey building was designed by Sheppard Robson was completed in 2009 and is the second tallest in Spinningfields.

Residential buildings take the form of the 16-storey Leftbank Apartments, which overlook the Irwell. The Civil Justice Centre, an 80 metre (262 ft) tall building was completed in 2007. The old criminal courts lie within the area. Facing the Civil Justice Centre, is the People's History Museum, a former pump house, and, on the other side of the river Salford Central railway station. Also completed in 2007 are 3 and 4 Hardman Square designed by Norman Foster. 3 Hardman Square was occupied by Halliwells LLP until it went into administration in 2010. Number 4 is occupied by HSBC Bank and Grant Thornton.

Leftbank Apartments are close to a cluster of restaurants including; Café Rouge; Carluccio's; Gourmet Burger Kitchen; Giraffe; Ha! Ha!; Samsi; Strada; Wagamama; and Zizzi. Living Ventures has opened two new establishments: The Alchemist (bar); and Australasia (fine dining restaurant).^{[citation needed]} Fast food operators represented include: Bagel Nash; Greggs; Philpotts and Pret a Manger.^{[citation needed]}

Future developments

1 Hardman Square, which lies partially on Quay Street will be designed by Norman Foster and construction is dependent on the demolition of Quay House on the site.

References

Bibliography

• Kellie, Euan (2010). Rebuilding Manchester. DB Publishing. ISBN 978-1-85983-786-3. 

External links

• Official developer's site
• Article at Manchester Update