Migrants secure riverside homes in mixed use development in Manchester
05 March 2008
Sand Martins influenced the programme for development and construction methods
Migratory Sand Martins nesting in tunnels accessed via a river wall have been accommodated in a new development in Greater Manchester.
The recent grant of a Scheduled Ancient Monument Consent completes a suite of consents required to deliver a mixed-use development on behalf of P&F Properties Ltd working with Bury Metropolitan Borough Council Children’s Service for some 1100 housing units, a secondary school, employment floorspace and new sports facilities on 35 hectares of land across five neighbouring sites in Radcliffe, Greater Manchester. King Sturge London and Manchester offices were involved in the preparation of a non-statutory Masterplan preceding the submission of five planning applications and an application for Scheduled Ancient Monuments Consent.
The presence of Sand Martins has influenced the masterplanning, the programme for development and construction methods.
The principal application, which was accompanied by an Environmental Statement co-ordinated and prepared by King Sturge was a ‘hybrid’ planning application for the redevelopment of an 18 hectare former paper mill site beside the River Irwell to provide some 520 residential units, 10,000 m² of employment floorspace, a 900 place secondary school and associated facilities. The other four simultaneous planning applications involved the redevelopment of two existing school sites to provide approximately 600 residential units and the provision of new school and community sports facilities on separate sites.
Matters required to be addressed in the applications included archaeology, visual impact, ecology – both terrestrial and aquatic – hydrology, flood risk, contamination, traffic and negotiations with CABE, English Heritage and the Environment Agency. The applications were referred to the Secretary of State – Ruth Kelly – as ‘departures’ from the adopted Unitary Development Plan. Notwithstanding the Borough having an ‘over supply’ of housing equating to approximately 16 years, the Secretary of State decided not to ‘call-in’ the applications for her own determination – avoiding a lengthy and costly Public Inquiry.
David Brooks of King Sturge Manchester Industrial Agency handled the original sale of the Paper Mill site. Steve Hogg of the Manchester office is instructed in respect of residential sales.
