Andy Burnham, the Mayor of Greater Manchester, has recently indicated his intention of reviewing the draft Greater Manchester Spatial Framework, or GMSF. Mr. Burnham sent out a call to development companies to rejuvenate and reshape Manchester’s town centres, with the purpose of offering more residential development on brownfield land and in town centres. Over the past few weeks, the mayor has even gone one step further and outlined his aims for a TCC, or Town Centre Challenge.
The intention of the TCC is to see more houses go up in town centres. There are hints that there may even be funding streams and powers put into play to support the delivery of residential schemes in the various town centres in the Greater Manchester area. With over 200,000 new homes needed in the area by 2035, it poses the question of whether this GMSF target of residential development can be carried out even with the help of existing shopping centres.
An interesting pattern over the last 12 months is the actions of shopping centre landlords. Aware of the shift in consumer habits, they have become much more adaptable and creative with their assets. As a result, these landlords have begun to modernise, providing a broader offer to spike attraction levels and increase stay times within the shopping centres. This has resulted in new and re-imagined forms of attractions in shopping centre’s, with an increased emphasis on leisure floor space. Interestingly, the capital has already taken this approach, with almost a third of its shopping centre’s undergoing redevelopment. What holds promise is that within all of these plans, the delivery of new homes has come as part of the proposed works.
Within the Northern Powerhouse, the area has recently seen the Regency Residential 6-Acre House installed above The Square Shopping Centre in Sale, which provided 80 new properties. Once more, there are further plans for an additional 205 set to go ahead by the owners, Maloneview, following evolving proposals. As part of the planned renovation of Chorlton Cross Shopping Center, the Greater Manchester Property Venture Fund has also established a development framework for the completion of 195 new homes.
The TCC has the ability to offer up the chance for shopping centre’s in the Greater Manchester area, such as Stretford, Hyde, Rochdale, Swinton, Wigan, Prestwich, and Oldham, to make a strong contribution to assisting housing delivery targets in the Greater Manchester area.
The concept of the TCC move comes down to the impact it can have on areas. A town centre’s residential setup can have a sizeable effect on the quality of the area and how the place is deemed by others. As a result, it can add dramatically to the economy of the town and the town centre itself.
Greater Manchester currently has 50 shopping centre’s in its region, which are all situated in accessible urban areas with strong links to public transport, which naturally lend themselves to high-density development. As a whole, the impact of this proposed shopping centre development can play a major role in helping the GMSF meet its target. Simply put, it will cleverly help to deliver mixed-use schemes with high-density residential development, which can, in turn, boost the economic profile of the town centre.
If you’re an investor or developer looking for a potential project in the Greater Manchester area, our expert team of commercial agents is here to help. With specialists and wide-ranging knowledge of the area, we can help put you among the growing areas of Manchester, so get in touch now!