A HUGELY ambitious masterplan to create a new city district situated between Greater Manchester’s Central Business District and Salford’s MediaCityUK, transforming the University of Salford campus and surrounding areas, has been agreed between the University and Salford City Council.
The plan sets out a vision for the next two decades enhancing connections with surrounding neighbourhoods and communities and tapping in to the area’s unique potential to deliver an unrivalled place to learn, live, work and visit.
Designed by 5plus Architects it identifies three ‘zones’ of investment: the Adelphi and Crescent neighbourhood; Peel Park and Frederick Road (Main University Campus); and the Frederic Road North Industrial Collaboration Zone.
Plans include 2,500 residential new build,apartments and houses and 300,000 sq ft of modern student residential accommodation.There will be a new hotel and bespoke conferencing suite as well as a new school and local retail & health services.
New commercial arts workspaces, live and work accommodation for Salford’s creatives, and nearly 2 million sq ft of public realm, green landscaped routes, 5 miles of running tracks, 1.5miles of cycleways and 1,000 trees are also planned
Helen Marshall, Vice Chancellor of the University of Salford, said: “These exciting plans for The Crescent represent the next step of a journey that started with the construction of the first of our university buildings – the Peel Building – in 1896.
“Working in partnership with the council and 5plus Architects, we have developed this masterplan to ensure that our campus is fit for purpose for the next twenty years, providing a great experience for our students and investing heavily in the future of the City of Salford.
“The new facilities that are part of the package of redevelopment will enable us to carry out the industry-led teaching and research that is key to our strategic aims of preparing our graduates for the modern world of work and delivering economic growth for Salford, Greater Manchester and beyond.”
Paul Dennett, Salford City Mayor, said: “The City of Salford has attracted billions of pounds of private sector investment in the last decade and delivered nationally important regeneration projects that have brought new industries, new training and development opportunities and new jobs to the city.
“The combined assets of the city and the university around The Crescent present a huge opportunity for the continued growth of the city linking education with enterprise and industry and arts, culture, heritage and community.
“The renewed focus of the University of Salford on Industrial Collaboration Zones (ICZs) across: Digital and Creative, Engineering and Environments, Sport and Health, and Wellbeing and Society is a welcomed development, highlighting the importance of institutional collaboration between the city and the university within place-making and Salford’s ambition for an inclusive economy.
“The agreement of the masterplan is an important first step to unlocking the scale of this opportunity to the benefit of all.
“It follows pro-active support and investment in the neighbouring areas of New Bailey and Greengate which has successfully helped attract thousands of high quality new jobs and this joint initiative continues that strategy.
“Securing growth in Salford is recognised as an important opportunity for the City as well as Greater Manchester and the North, at a time when there is a focus on rebalancing power, creating a more inclusive economy and growing the northern economies.”
5plus director Tony Skipper, said: “This is a vast area with a lot of existing assets, from transport connections to heritage buildings to green space. Our brief was to unlock this potential to create one city district that will play a significant role in the economic and cultural life of Salford.”
