Included in the project will be shops, housing and more than GBP 400 million of Grade A office space in Manchester city centre.
Dubbed Greengate, the development is fully funded by the Homes and Communities Agency, NWDA, European Regional Development Agency, Network Rail and Ask.
Ask Director John Hughes said of the project: “There is a very positive story in relation to the demand and supply curve of office space and we anticipate a strong appetite from funders/investors to partner us in delivering a first phase.
“The certainty of delivery of the public realm by April 2012 will be a significant factor for businesses.”
The location of the Greengate project is right on the border between Manchester and Salford and will therefore seek to provide a link between each.
Recently commercial property firm Savills reported that office space in Manchester is to hit GBP 30 per square foot before the year is out. This is in comparison to the high of GBP 28.50 it climbed to in 2010.
Patrick Joynson, director at Savills, said: “The imbalance between demand for institutional office stock in Manchester city centre and supply will start to place real upward pressure on rents especially as demand starts to pick up.
“The real issue for Manchester now is finding a solution to the inevitable mid-term shortage of grade A space in the market.”
However, GVA’s recent quarterly review of the regional office market showed a fairly sluggish start to 2011 concerning the take-up of office space. However, the review predicted that take-up would increase significantly as the year progresses, and take-up in Bristol, Edinburgh and Glasgow is already above average.
Its quarterly review looks at the office space markets off Manchester, Bristol, Birmingham, Liverpool, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Newcastle.
Editor’s notes: Greengate is the oldest part of the mediaeval town of Salford and ASK Development’s scheme has brought the area into the 21st Century.
As of June 2023, a large number of residential dwellings had been developed as well as health and wellbeing amenities, food and beverage offerings and large public realm areas centred around Greengate Square.
100 Embankment, completed in June 2020, offers office space to lease with suites starting at 10,500 square feet.
Also within the Grade-A office building is flexi space that is operated by flex space operator X+WHY. Products offered include coworking memberships, private workspaces and hybrid office packages.
There is also plug and play workspace available on the first floor of the ABITO building on an all-inclusive rental basis.