A site behind Piccadilly station originally intended for a 60-storey skyscraper has been sold to make way for HS2.
The plans for the residential tower with hotel and leisure facilities on Store Street dates back to 2003, when it was bought by developer Ballymore.
Building work then began after planning permission was granted two years later, as the Manchester Evening News reports.
But the tower - which would have been the tallest residential building in Europe at one time - was stalled by the recession in 2008.
Attempts to reignite the scheme never got off the ground and Ballymore put the site up for sale in 2016.
It had been speculated that it would suit another developer looking for a prime private rented sector (PRS) site.
But now it has been confirmed Ballymore has sold the plot to HS2 Ltd, acting on behalf of the Department for Transport.
According to Place North West, the deal was worth £25m.
A spokesperson for HS2 Ltd could not confirm that figure but said: “We confirm that an agreement has been reached between Ballymore and HS2 Ltd acting on behalf of the Department for Transport for a site on Store Street in Manchester.”
A spokesperson for Ballymore issued the same statement.
Leaders in Manchester are currently trying to lobby the government to reconsider its preferred plans for the redesign of Piccadilly station to accommodate both Northern Powerhouse Rail (NPR) and HS2, the high-speed railway network that will connect London, Birmingham, Leeds and Manchester via trains capable of travelling at 225mph.
Currently, the government favours widening Piccadilly by six new platforms.
Manchester council says this design would be at its capacity 'on day one' and wants an underground station instead.
The government has said it will outline how it intends to deliver HS2 and NPR in an 'Integrated Rail Plan' expected to be published later this year.
