How new city centre park could look...
THIS is how Manchester city centre’s new public park could look.
Plans for the civic space –around the Mayfield depot – will go on display later this month.
The city centre last got a new park when Piccadilly Gardens were created in around 1914.
A huge part of the industrial land around the Mayfield depot, opposite Piccadilly station, will be opened up as green public space.
Hundreds of apartments will be built and the depot will be transformed.
The proposals form part of a new draft masterplan signed off earlier this month by council chiefs. That vision is now going out to consultation, including public displays from next Thursday.
The masterplan would split Mayfield into several zones, with the 6.5-acre terraced riverside park – which would run the length of the area – featuring restored pathways, trees, footbridges and a large lawn.
Four skyscrapers around Hoyle Street would form part of plans for 1,500 apartments, while a new ‘commercial pavilion’ is planned for the corner of Fairfield Street and the A6.
The depot, which has hosted a number of successful cultural events recent years, would be fully refurbished to create a new leisure venue.
Mayfield’s transformation will be carried out by a partnership between developer U+I, Manchester council, Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) and the government. The latest proposals form a high-level blueprint that would underpin all future planning decisions for the district.
James Heather, development director at U+I, said: “We are very pleased to have reached the stage where we can put our proposed vision of a new Mayfield before the people of the city.
“In the 12 months or so since we were appointed as development partners, we’ve found a huge interest in the site from the public and this is their opportunity to respond and to tell us what they think of our plans. This is a key moment in the next chapter for Mayfield and we are sure the people of the city will be interested to see how far we’ve come.”
Plans will be on display from Thursday, March 1, at Medlock primary in Ardwick from 2pm to 6pm, before moving to the Victoria statue in Piccdilly Gardens on Saturday, March 3, from 9am to 5pm.
They will then stay at archway nine of Temperance Street in Mayfield from 12pm to 6pm on Thursday, March 8; from 12pm to 8pm on Friday, March 9; from 12pm to 6pm on Saturday, March 10; from 12pm to 5pm on Sunday, March 11.