Construction will begin shortly on the development of 281,000 sq ft office block at One St Peter’s Square in Manchester. The commercial property in Manchester that is currently occupying the site, will be demolished to make way for the new state of the art office block.
Carillion Construction saw off stiff competition from Kier Group to be appointed as the developers of the new office block. The decision of who to appoint was in the hands of the Council, who didn’t take any shortcuts when deciding which construction company to appoint, as Councillor Kieran Quinn, Chair of the Greater Manchester Pension Fund (GMPF) expressed, “We underwent a vigorous and lengthy process to ensure that the right contractor was selected for the construction of One St Peter’s Square.”
Carillion Construction has completed numerous projects over the years, which probably worked in their favour during tendering. Some of the company’s high profile developments include:
“Experience, reputation and ability to deliver were of paramount importance as we are committed to ensuring that this is a very high quality scheme and that it is completed within the projected time frame,” Councillor Quinn added.
The new office block at One St Peter’s Square is being run by the Manchester Property Venture Fund and Argent, who are working as a joint venture. Already 63,000 sq ft of office space over three floors has been taken up by KPMG, who specialise in offering professional services in advisory, audit and tax. The company plans to make the office block their new headquarters from 2015, as James Heather from Argent stated, “Whilst we are delighted to have a 63,000 sq ft pre-let to KPMG, we still have almost 210,000 sq ft of Grade A office space available.
“As one of the only developers currently speculatively building commercial property outside of London it further reinforces our commitment to the scheme and confidence in its unique offering and setting,” Mr Heather added.
Connell Brothers, a local business from Manchester have been appointed to demolish the existing commercial property, which should be a pile of rubble by April 2012. Carillion Construction will then be able to start work on the new office block, which should be ready for occupying in early 2014. Speaking of the development, John Rodaway from Carillion Construction expressed, “One St Peter’s Square is not only a building of significant architectural merit but it will also create a new landmark building at the gateway to the city centre. We have previously worked with Argent and we are very happy to have the opportunity to continue our successful working relationship.”
However some critics are questioning why the new office block will indeed be a landmark? The artist’s impression shows a grey tall building, nothing special. Just because the building is a Grade A office space, does that make it meet the criteria to be a landmark? Maybe some colours will be added to the commercial property over the next four years, but we will have to wait and see.
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