Changes to the planning application for an ex-footballer property development scheme have seen plans for a new boutique hotel scrapped because there is more demand for office space in Manchester than hotels.
Jackson’s Row Developments is led by Manchester United and England defender-turned-pundit Gary Neville, and has changed its planning application for its St. Michael’s scheme for a 1.4-acre site near Manchester Town Hall. The original plans included converting the former Bootle Street Police Station into a boutique hotel, but the new application changes have a view towards converting the property into offices instead.
The project manager for the project, Zerum Consulting, said that one of the reasons for the change is that post-pandemic it is difficult to find an operator for a hotel, whereas there is still a high demand for office space in Manchester.
Originally, Neville worked with fellow ex-Manchester United man Ryan Giggs on the St. Michael’s scheme, but Giggs is no longer involved in the project.
The project will still include a hotel as part of a new skyscraper building, but the scrapping of the boutique hotel indicates that there is more demand for office space in Manchester than hospitality property, with the latter facing such challenges as staff shortages.
Home and remote working may have become a permanent part of working practices even now that lockdown restrictions are being relaxed, but most workers have returned to their Manchester offices and there is still a high demand for office space in the region.
