Manchester City Council are involved in negotiations to buy Bootle Street police station with a view to selling it to a consortium led by former Man United Stars for redevelopment.
The station, first opened in 1937, closed earlier this year, leaving the city centre with a twenty four hour manned pits at the Town Hall in Albert Square.
It stands in the centre of a 300 square foot parcel of land between Deansgate and Albert Square, bounded by Southmill Street, Jacksons Row and Bootle Street, which is ripe for redevelopment.
In a report to be put before the executive committee of the council this week, the closure of the station:
” provides an opportunity for the comprehensive redevelopment of a significant site. There is an impetus to move quickly to prevent the area becoming blighted from the presence of a vacant building of a significant scale in a strategically important location.”
The council has been in negotiations with the police commissioner and it us believed that a figure of £2m has been agreed.
According to the report, The vision for the Bootle Street site is to create a new mixed-use development of local and regional importance.
“The site has the potential to extend the high quality environment that already characterises the city centre, introduce new residential, leisure and commercial facilities, enhance connectivity (including to Spinningfields) and maximise wider regeneration benefits. Its redevelopment needs to be brought forward in a way that complements existing developments in adjacent areas within the city centre, such as Spinningfields, First Street and those along the Corridor.”
At the same time, the Council has been approached by a development consortium, Jackson’s Row Developments Company (JRDC), who were in advanced negotiations to secure contractual arrangements with the management of the United Reform Synagogue on Jackson’s Row, with Enterprise Inns who own the Abercrombie; and with the owner of the open land at Jackson’s Row, called the ’Rackind land’ for the acquisition of their interests, to create a redevelopment opportunity of significance.
JRDC is a consortium set up with the backing of former United Stars, Gary Neville and Ryan Giggs. It plans to build the £170m scheme which will include a five star hotel, leisure, residential, and office accommodation. It will include a new square to provide links to the other schemes within the immediate vicinity
