The vibrant Stevenson Square heart of the Northern Quarter, known for its redbrick two-and-three storey bars, shops, and restaurants, has a new addition. A 100 metre tall apartment complex on Port Street now stands tall, offering private residents' amenities and a public garden with a children's play area.
While parts of the three-building development will be open to the public, it's designed to be an exclusive residential space. Nik Bremner, director at developer Select Property, said it was being marketed to high-powered executives seeking a slice of city life.
The asking prices mirror this ambition. A two-bedroom corner flat is priced at £450,000, standard two-beds are between £380-390,000, and a single bedroom unit ranges from £310-320,000, depending on the view.
The plush amenities of the £195m One Port Street include a 20m swimming pool with a sky light, spa pool, a top-notch gym, and a club room named 'Paganini's', a tribute to a 19th century tavern that once stood nearby, named after an Italian composer.
Nik Bremner took the Local Democracy Reporting Service on a tour of the building this month. Although Nik wasn't involved in the planning proposal when the building heights were set at 32, 11, and nine storeys - leading one councillor to nickname it 'Ancoats' sundial' - he suggested the skyscraper size was chosen to benefit as many people as possible.
"Naturally with a footprint [of] about 1.2 acres, it's not massive compared to some sites, so you ultimately need to build up to be able to do that. If we had three comparable sized buildings, we're probably talking about approximately half of those apartments," he said.
Whilst One Port Street will mark the Northern Quarter's debut as a genuine skyscraper destination, it won't be the district's first tower.
At the creative quarter's far end, the so-called 'Shudehill Shard' sparked fierce opposition from locals and councillors.
Campaigns and legal challenges aimed at halting the 16-storey structure's development were unsuccessful, with completion achieved in 2021.
More high-rises are now destined for the Northern Quarter. The 18-storey, £77m 'upside down' NXQ 'tech hub' office development secured planning approval for Great Ancoats Street in January.
However, both One Port Street's prospective executive dwellers and NXQ's technology occupiers represent a contrast to the archetypal Northern Quarter residents during the area's formative reputation-building years.
During the early-90s, when fewer than 500 people called the city centre home, the Northern Quarter was still taking shape. When Tony Wilson launched Dry Bar in 1989 and music venue Night & Day opened in 1991, they were trailblazers on the gritty periphery of the city centre.
This was territory characterised by affordable rents, convenient parking, and wholesale operations, drawing creative types who embraced the rough-and-ready lifestyle. As the Northern Quarter's reputation continues to soar, becoming a hotspot where Chanel might stage a catwalk, its residents are seemingly becoming more affluent.
Yet, this doesn't mean the Northern Quarter is losing its unique character entirely.
In a nod to modernity, last week (July 9), the council announced intentions to tear down the dated Church Street car park, an 'eyesore' from the early 70s, and in its place, construct 300 new homes along with commercial spaces. That is very much in line with the contemporary vision for Manchester city centre.
What distinguishes Church Street's redevelopment plan is the inclusion of four public squares, a versatile community and gallery space, and a commitment to providing smaller, affordable commercial units to support local independent businesses.
Council leader Bev Craig emphasised the strategic decision behind these plans when speaking to the LDRS on Tuesday (July 15): "We would not have been embarked on the move that we've made, and I always said, as leader of the council really clearly internally, that if we couldn't get something that played to the heart of the soul of the Northern Quarter, that strengthened it, and that protected it, then we wouldn't sell or developed the site.
"I want to be clear that anyone that builds there, anyone that moves in there, any hotel that's there, and moving into the heart of the Northern Quarter, you need to go and have a look at the Northern Quarter at 1 o'clock in the morning and a Saturday night to see if you think it's the area for you."
Initiatives such as Church Street ensure that the Northern Quarter maintains its reputation as a centre of creativity and nightlife. However, with the influx of luxury flats and tech hubs, the demographic is bound to shift.
