Piccadilly Tower


The Piccadilly Tower is a proposed development designed by Woods Bagot in Manchester city centre, England and could rise again.

History

The developer proposed to build a 58-storey, 188 m skyscraper.
The tower would have 420 residential units and a 220-bed hotel, as well as a fitness centre, conference facilities, restaurants and bars. New public walkways would be constructed along the Ashton Canal adjacent to the site. Three underground floors would provide car parking for residents through an NCP public car park. A 17-storey "East build" section would comprise retail/commercial/residential space.
The site, a car park on a railway viaduct to the rear of Piccadilly Station between Store Street and Ducie Street was purchased by Inacity for £14 million in 2003. The planning application was submitted in 2004 and was approved in March 2005. The cost of the development is around £220 million.
The project was a joint venture between Inacity and Merepark, but has been sold to Irish property developers Ballymore Group, with Inacity retaining a small share. It will be Ballymore's first development in Manchester.
Groundwork started in January 2008, to be completed in August 2008. The work consisted of demolishing eight viaduct arches, redirecting a sewer, and constructing a 19 m deep concrete retaining wall to the north, where the site is adjacent to a canal.
On 8 September 2008 Inacity announced the project was on hold due to the financial crisis of 2007–2010, and construction would not resume until the economy stabilised. The site was converted back to a carpark.
As of 2018, the site is still owned by original developers Ballymore. The site is currently used as a car park. Ballymore has objected to numerous developments nearby, such as the renovation of Gateway House, which would block access to Piccadilly station, suggesting the scheme is still alive – at least as a proposal.