An ambitious plan has been revealed to redevelop a former retail park site in Greater Manchester into a thriving new community.
Rochdale Council in partnership with Rochdale Development Agency has agreed a deal to bring developer Capital & Centric to the town, to totally transform the Central Retail Park site into a new 'Neighbourhood' housing concept.
Neighbourhood Rochdale will include over 200 suburban homes for rent, including a mix of modern, spacious and low carbon homes.
Designed by shedkm to be a sustainable exemplar, it will also include a linear park, running track, gym and community hub alongside community space such as café-bars and delis.
The site, which has been vacant for nearly a decade, was previously occupied by Wynsors, Focus and MFI.
The plans are part of the transformation of Rochdale town centre, which is in the middle of a £400m regeneration programme.
Councillor John Blundell, cabinet member for regeneration, business, skills and employment at Rochdale Borough Council, and board member at the Rochdale Development Agency and chair of the Rochdale Stations Alliance, said: “With millions already invested into Rochdale town centre, we’ve set the bar very high in terms of want to achieve here and this type of high quality housing is the perfect fit.
“The work we’re doing to create a high quality retail and leisure offer and a reimagined public realm, makes Rochdale a really attractive place to live and I know that these will be the first of many new homes to be built in Rochdale.”
Adam Higgins, co-founder of Capital & Centric said: “Many Greater Manchester towns have been hit hard by the declining high street but there’s a huge opportunity for places like Rochdale to reinvent themselves with town centre living.
"The Council have a really ambitious vision to transform the town centre and we’re working with them to create an aspirational community with super energy efficient homes, game changing architecture and all the amenities that will attract people to town centre living.”
Aimed at breathing life back into struggling town centres, the 'Neighbourhood' concept could be rolled out by the developer across the UK.
It hopes to reinvent suburban living, designing homes and communities that suit how people live today - using modern methods of construction and with open-plan, design-led homes that maximise the use of space.
Mr Higgins added: "Neighbourhood is our way of bridging the gap between urban and suburban living. An antidote to poor quality, out-dated and uninspiring housing types, it recognises that people want to live in communities not just homes.
"So, in Rochdale we’re planning plenty of green space, a community hub and café-bar. With easy links into Manchester and a proper mix of homes, we see it appealing just as much to young professionals as downsizers. It’ll also be pretty unique in that it’s suburban homes but all of them will be for rent.”
A planning application for Neighbourhood Rochdale is expected early next year.
If approved, it will be built by construction firm Willmott Dixon who recently completed the £80m retail and leisure development nearby at Rochdale Riverside.
Site investigation works have started on site.
