News, Manchester
An industrial wasteland in a city which has been transformed into a “beautiful green” parkland will become the “catalyst” for major redevelopment works, a councillor has said.
The former Central Retail Park on Great Ancoats Street in Manchester has been converted into Ancoats Green park, equipped with open spaces, new play areas and accessible equipment.
It will open to the public on Saturday and forms part of a wider £40m Manchester City Council programme to redevelop the Ancoats area of the city centre.
Council leader Bev Craig said the new parkland space gave “a real chance to regenerate an area of the city that has sat empty for too long”.
The council bought the site, which closed down in 2019, for £37m.
Play areas with accessible equipment – including the city’s only slide for wheelchair users – open grassed areas, footpaths and space for small events, all form part of the new city centre park.
Its opening supports the building of 1,500 new homes nearby.
The first council-owned This City housing development at No. 1 Ancoats Green is expected to be completed this summer.
Craig said: “We were really keen to take a bit of land that people didn’t know much about, that had grass on it but was hidden away, and work with the local community to create nice play facilities and a lovely space.
“We have turned this area into what will be a thriving place for people to live.”
The project has used upcycled materials throughout, including referencing historical flint glass works in the park features.
Lindsay Humblet, from Planit Architects who helped design the park, told Radio Manchester: “The biggest is the huge new slide which sits within a 10 metre bottle, and we did find the original wine bottle which is hard to believe but it came from the site.
“We want to create a place for everybody.”
Mr Humblet added: “I hope there will be an ownership and a pride around this space for years to come.”
The park has been funded by Homes England, the Greater Manchester Combined Authority via the Brownfield Land Fund, and the city council.
A community event will take place on 17 May to celebrate the park’s opening, hosted by This City.
