The Manchester City Council has approved another batch of high-rise projects, including a 246-metre residential tower designed by the architectural firm SimpsonHaugh. Upon completion, it will become the tallest building in the UK outside London.
The project, named Viadux 2, valued at £350 million, was developed for the developer Salboy. It envisions the construction of a 76-storey tower housing 452 apartments, as well as a 160-room hotel under the Nobu brand, which is partly owned by actor Robert De Niro. Once completed, the tower will become the fourth tallest building in the UK, surpassed only by The Shard and the still-unbuilt 1 Undershaft and 22 Bishopsgate in London.
The scheme also includes the construction of an adjacent 23-storey building, which will offer 133 affordable apartments.
These two buildings will be the latest addition to the cluster of skyscrapers in the south of Manchester city centre, where the first phase of Viadux — a 40-storey tower, also designed by SimpsonHaugh — has already been completed. Its construction was carried out by Domis, Salboy’s partner, which also plans to deliver the second phase.
The Viadux 2 development team includes Renaissance (structural engineer), Artal (project manager), WSP (façade engineer), SLR (transport consultant), Ridge (building systems engineer), Deloitte (planning consultant), GIA (daylight expert), and Planit (landscape architect).
The approval for Viadux 2 was granted by a narrow margin — seven votes in favour versus three against — during yesterday’s planning committee meeting. The decision came after the tower’s design was partially revised to reflect agreements with Nobu, which will operate the entire hotel.
The committee also approved another project: a 44-storey residential tower designed by Sheppard Robson, set to be built on a plot south of Viadux, further expanding the district’s high-rise cluster.
Another approved project is the 2-4 Whitworth Street scheme, developed by Glenbrook. It was passed with nine votes in favour and one against. The plan includes 364 rental apartments and approximately 7,800 square feet of commercial space.
The building will feature a podium clad with a ring of terracotta-coloured three-storey arches framing the retail space at street level, alongside around 700 square metres of public space.
The project team includes Deloitte (planning consultant), Quartz Project Services (cost consultant), AKTII (structural engineer), Futurserv (M&E engineer), OFR Fire Consultants (fire safety specialists), and Layer Studio as the landscape architect.
This project will replace an outdated plan for a seven-storey Travelodge hotel, designed by Glenn Howells for Aberdeen Asset Management. Although approved back in December 2020, the hotel was never built.
A fourth approved project is a 33-storey tower located on First Street, designed by Tim Groom Architects for the developer Vita, which specialises in student accommodation. The building will provide 841 student beds.
The project team also includes Deloitte as planning consultant, ROC Consulting as structural engineer, Abacus as cost consultant, Futurserv for monitoring and evaluation, and TPM Landscape as landscape architect.
As of now, the high-rise cluster in South Manchester already includes 12 completed towers, with 19 more projects approved for construction.