Proposals to construct more than 400 apartments in Manchester's student heartland could be turned down after council bosses branded it 'overbearing'.
Watkin Jones Group is seeking to redevelop the headquarters of the Usdaw union in Fallowfield into 'high quality and attractive' managed student accommodation.
According to the plans, two buildings, 13 storeys and five storeys high, would be built on the site while the Victorian-era Oakley Villa would be refurbished and extended.
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According to Watkin Jones Group, the proposed development on Wilmslow Road would provide an alternative to the large numbers of homes of multiple occupancy (HMOs) in the area.
However, the developer's application has received almost 250 objections from residents and councillors, while council planning officers have now also expressed their opposition.
A report to Manchester planning committee says the 13-storey tower would become an 'over-dominant' feature that would tower over nearby homes and Platt Fields Park.
This would have a 'detrimental effect on the character of the area' while also 'urbanising' the edge of the park and potentially harming neighbouring trees and wildlife habitat, according to the Local Democracy Reporting service.
Introducing 425 students into an area 'already experiencing high levels of student accommodation and occupation', while not providing housing for families or elderly people, has also been raised as an issue by officers.
The report says: "As described by residents this has put pressure on the area in a number of ways including the provision of local services and antisocial behaviour.
"It is considered that the proposals would add to these pressures and would not have a positive regeneration impact on Fallowfield."
Watkin Jones Group say the development would help address a 'pressing need' to build purpose-built student accommodation (PBSA) at 'competitive prices' in Manchester.
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But objectors claim there would be no incentive for students to move into the proposed PBSA as the rents are 'significantly greater' than what they are currently paying in HMOs.
Manchester council has itself said that more needs to be done to entice students out of mainstream housing and into PBSA after losing £17m in council tax revenue in 2019/20.
However planning officers say the proposals fall short of several criteria in the PBSA policy endorsed by the council's executive last December.
