Please post a comment if you have anything to add (following the usual guidelines of course. Comments that don't follow my guidelines will be deleted.) I try to reply to every comment, though sometimes it can take a while. Many thanks!
the proposals for the tallest tower are terrible. Another generic Simpson Haugh tower with no character and that same checkerboard facade. I agree with you the observation deck would've been great, hopefully they will come up with something better as Manchester deserves some proper landmarks.
Yes, I find it interesting that one architect has designed all those buildings. They do have a recognisable look. In Dubai I think they had a policy of using a variety of architects. Many thanks.
I think a lot of the developments being residential is what has given Manchester its resilience, it seems the WFH culture has put Manchester in a good spot to weather the current economic storm quite well.
i disagree. these fancy buildings represent a lot of debt, which cannot be realised with the size of the local economy. it will all come crashing down.
Thanks for the video. I think there is a reasonable chance of a bubble, say 30 percent, but fingers crossed that Manchester has the critical mass to keep going, unlike, say, Leeds, Liverpool, or my hometown, Hull. I now live in Hong Kong and I suspect quite a few - not all - of these new flats are being bought up by Hongkongers because many can now live and work in the UK. Also, sterling is cheap against the HK$, which is pegged to the US$. Flats in Manchester are attractive to Hongkongers for the following reasons: 1) Most people in HK live in flats like this 2) It's cheaper than London but still has an international airport 3) the universities are good 4) there is work 5) There is a decent-sized Chinese community 6) the flats are cheap by HK standards, even more so with weak sterling 7) football 8) they are more secure than a house 9) convenience 10) easier to rent out if needed There are many RU-vid videos in Hong Kong about which areas to buy in. Anyway, I would welcome this overseas investment as a shot in the arm for the Manchester economy - I wish all this money was flowing into Hull instead.
Many thanks for your very informative and insightful comment. I have worked in Hong Kong, I know it well. There is definitely an influx of Hong Kong people into the UK. I've met some in Manchester and Liverpool. One of the projects is funded by HK-based FEC. Maybe Hull can also attract some investment. The northern cities should work together.
I am sat here in Melbourne Australia watching your presentation. As a Manc born in Withington the ares of the city that you featured were my playgrounds! Oh, how Hulme,Chorlton on Medlock, Ardwick, Moss Side, White City have changed. For the better?
That's a point of discussion. The city has to keep on renewing as it's done in the past. But sometimes the renewal makes things worse, not better. Personally I find it fascinating to look back at earlier times and compare with today, but I would definitely not like to find myself living back in that time. Today's technology - cameras, computers, smartphones, the internet, are fantastic and present many opportunities that didn't exist before, ilke doing this channel!
I'm not sure about that, I would have to look into it. On the site of Regent Road retail park, I often stop off there. I'll see what I can find. Thanks for flagging it up.
I like the variety in the mix of old and new architecture close together in Manchester. Wouldn't want it to be all modern like Dubai or equally all historical like Venice for example
Well Manchester by its very identity is a mixture of old and new together, particularly following the bomb damaged of the Second World War. The new part of Dubai to the south of the old city sprung up out of an area of empty desert - I remember it when it was uninhabited land and once camped out on a remote beach which will now be part of a mega-hotel development. And as for Venice I don't think we would appreciate it very much if there was a 'Beetham Tower' jutting up into the air next to the Grand Canal! Those are separate places, you're right, Manchester should neither be all modern or all traditional it's a mixture of both and has been for some time.
I love Manchester and have been living here for past 28 years. I first moved to Manchester in 1995 from Blackburn at the age of 19 when I stated uni - MMU. I stayed at the Arosa hotel in Withington from 95-98, graduated and settled permanently having secured a job. I may be an accountant, but I love architecture and hence love building designs and developments. I own property in Manchester so always nice to see it enhances in value and all future developments are adding to that net worth. Manchester may not be the official second capital but in many ways it actually does feel the second capital to London. Long may all the development continue. Love Manchester and Man City FC 💙
It may feel to you the second Capital to London, but the fact of the matter truthfully it is no where near the second largest City/ Capital as the City of Manchester is only 6th in place, the actual second City is Birmingham and that is official and when are you lot in Manchester ever going to understand that.
@@peterwilliamallen1063 but when will you understand that we do understand lol. Of course we understand Birmingham is bigger and the official second capital. But around the world Manchester has a better reputation and recognition as a major City than Birmingham. Also look at statistics, people moving out of London are targeting Manchester over Birmingham. Manchester has been voted better than Birmingham in every way. But of course officially it's the second capital although Manchester actually feels like the second capital. That was my point.
@@suhailjamil3909 But when will you understand that Manchester is only known round the world for a failing football club called " Manchester United" nothing else, but the fact is Birmingham has become more well known now due to the 2022 successful and profitable Commonwealth Games compared to the past,so successful that the next European Athletics Championship Games in I believe 2026 is coming to Birmingham being the first time it has moved out side of Mainland Europe, again no more people are coming to live in Birmingham from London due to Brum being very close to London for Rail Commuting and the reason that HS2 is centered on Birmingham as it's core rout, which it is estimated that over the next 5 years another 500,000 citizens will live in Birmingham on top of the 1.5 million citizens already living in Birmingham due to the vast area of green belt land with in the City Boundary on the Sutton Coldfield side, and sorry the City Center of Birmingham is a modern green City Center that dwarf the Manchester City Center and with in Birmingham you have the HQ's on National Express, Arriva X Country trains, West Midlands / London Midland Trains, HS2 ltd, the UK HQ of HSBC which moved out of London and Cadbury/Mondolaze plus JLR, the largest Primark in the World, the Largest Public lending Library in Europe and Largest City Council in Europe and Birmingham since the Commonwealth Games is becoming more recognised national and internationally.
@@peterwilliamallen1063 untrue Birmingham is small than Manchester in size and economy Birmingham just looks bigger in some statistics because it's council area is so oversized
I'm glad the area is progressing however I'm skeptical towards the high rise boom. Local architectural styles should have been applied, because this way there's no way you can tell whether you're in UK or US or somewhere in East Asia. It's dull, generic and overpriced.
I think that’s a good point but I think the architects, developers and finance companies would prefer to go with a ‘generic’ look as that’s what the public are used to and would be prepared to rent or buy. Some architects are making an attempt to make the new apartment blocks blend in by using brick, arches and traditional features. That’s why converted buildings like the Ancoats mills have a special, authentic appeal.
They have renamed the area I live from Charlton on Medlock to New Brunswick. I saw in the paper there are proposals to redevelop the area from Mancunian Way along Kincardine Rd C on Medlock with offices shops houses and public realms. Let’s see if it happens. Great video
Isn't New Brunswick the new housing area that lies within Chorlton-on-Medlock? Yes, I've been following the redevelopment around Kincardine Rd and Gartside Gardens, interested to see if that goes ahead. Many thanks as ever!
Hola muy buenas noches amigo le saluda su amigo Cristian rojas yo estuve es la ciudad de Manchester norte de Inglaterra yo recomiendo viajar es la ciudad de Manchester yo amor Manchester
The issue is that Manchester needs to drastically increase it's resident population in order to increase productivity and GDP. It's an important part of increasing a cities economy and life. Sometimes CPOs are needed with relocations happening. Not saying this will happen here.
@@JohnnyZenith i would get that for new york, but manchester has so much waste land and empty brownfield sites, demolishing any existing residential buildings would be ridiculous, pamona Island is barren and would look great with a bunch of sky scrapers!
No one has to live in them, people pay a lot of money to live there, but the residents who were moved into the Hulme Crescents in the 60s, that’s a different story.
Greater Manchester is not Manchester, when will you people up there understand the difference between the City of Manchester and Greater Manchester, Greater Manchester is am autonomous Metropolitan county Council set up in 1971 to take over the running of Public transport in it''s area from the various City and Town Council, take control of Fire, Police and Ambulance services, The City of Manchester is what Manchester is and that is the City incorporated with in it@s City Boundaries.
Manchester has definitely come along way over the past 30 years . And it just keeps on getting better . You have a fantastic transportation system great shopping and entertainment districts . The blend of old and new properties gives Manchester a very unique character that I haven’t seen elsewhere. Soon you’re going to have the biggest waterpark in Europe .
@@AidanEyewitness Preston is on the move too. We have the fastest new build development than anywhere else in the uk and plans for 3 massive skyscrapers in Preston being recently approved. My city is definitely on move of being the best city in Lancashire.
One way of keeping Manchester's red brick building colour is to build a few modern buildings in a similar colour, such as that one opposite the church on Deansgate and the River street tower also. The Deansgate one in particular fits in very well there
Yes, many new buildings are in a reddish colour and use brick-style cladding - though not generally real bricks. There's one building on Great Ancoats Street from the 2000s, the one next to the canal with the long horizontal windows, which has a shade of bricks much lighter than the old mills behind. I was told this was a mistake - someone made an error with the brick sample.
I love how tight the narration and filming is on your videos. Good to see those bike lanes. Wish we had ones like that where we live. It will be interesting to see your documentation of the progress of Vista River Gardens. The location could make for a very appealing development, if it is done right.
Great to receive your comment, as ever! It takes a lot of time and effort to do the narration, writing, recording, editing, removing badly spoken bits, correcting mistakes, cutting out breaths, speeding it up a bit, editing clips & photos so they are in synch with the voiceover, adding background music! I appreciate your comments! We’ll see how Trinity Islands turns out. I think it will be good in some ways, but not in others! The bike lanes in Manchester are good, but still way behind the Netherlands!
Sorry to say this, but Manchester has some of the worst modern architecture I've seen in any city in Europe. Why do they keep repeating mistakes from the past? Giant gray glass boxes don't make a city more beautiful. Most designs look very poor.
I appreciate your point of view, and I there could be more innovative and 'stand-out' buildings, as you can find in other cities, but many people seem to be fairly positive about the designs. Is there a city in Europe you think produces the level of architecture that you appreciate?
@@AidanEyewitnessEuropeans seem to have a very negative view on anything high rise there's always comments about 'too dystopian' 'too much like china/us' and I think there's a lingering sentiment about social housing towers that make people weary of anything tall but I don't agree especially with comment's about it eventually being dated some of the UK's poor 60s architecture attempts did date badly but there's plenty of 60s-70s US skyscrapers that still looks great today it won't Necessarily be disliked as soon as it gets old as long as it's built well
On my early morning run (a while ago) into and through the city centre and back up Cambridge Street out to Whalley Range I would run under the Mancunian way and remember reading a plaque dedicating the opening of if by the then prime minister Harold "the pound in your pocket" Wilson. Is it still there I wonder?
A plaque referring to Harold Wilson - I know he opened it, but I am not aware of any plaque still there. I'll have to look into that. Many thanks for flagging it up.
You do realise that they wouldn’t be building them if they weren’t getting let out don’t you? They’re all full, Manchester is bursting at the seams. Suck it up buttercup
@@smorkeyyy9845 maybe im gettin' old but maybe whizz kids on e-scooters vaping cherry juice will rent them ? or up and coming property or crypto merchants will buy them with their gainz ?
@@888ssss you seem to have a negative image of potential inhabitants. Perhaps even worrying is what happens when there is a fire in these tall buildings? I remember the film 'Towering Inferno' which made a serious point about the fire truck ladders not being long enough to be able to rescue ppl. The non-serious enjoyable point was watching Fred Astaire hurtling out as a flaming projectile. 🤣🤣
I live in one of the new developments around the chester road, whilst deansgate square is impressive, the "cheaper" developments really need some infrastructure (gp, chemist, schools, bars, cafe's, restaurants) if these places are going to develop communities, especially with WFH.
Yes it seems to me as an observer that they are building lots of new residential blocks, but just slotting then into the existing street plan and not providing facilities. Similar happened in Wythenshawe in the late forties. Dwellings first infrastructure later.
@@AidanEyewitness also what london/new york get right, and what makes apartment life much more desirable, is great parks; especially in this week's sunshine! Deansgate would benefit from a Washington square park type space, but can imagine a sky scraper in the Bridgewater car park is more lucrative!
@@didthosefeet8867 good point. But London’s and NYC’s parks were already laud out in the mid-19th century. But Manchester has two new parks - Ancoats and Hulme both created from demolition sites just outside the city centre.
@@AidanEyewitness he means. the residents will be forced to be locked inside during climate emergencies, and wont be allowed out to help 'cool the planet'
