What the mayoral development corporation could mean for ‘nationally significant’ scheme
The Northern Gateway project has been called the biggest employment development in Greater Manchester
The vision to build 7,000 new homes, create 20,000 ‘high-quality’ jobs and carve out 17m sq ft of employment land is about to be unlocked. The Atom Valley project has been described as a nationally-significant scheme that will change the face of north Manchester forever.
Now it has a new driving force behind it – a mayoral development corporation (MDC).
These special powers, granted by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), are designed to speed up development and attract investment within a specific area. This will be done by cutting down red tape that slows down redevelopment and ramps up costs.
The MDC has powers to acquire, hold, regenerate and dispose of land including compulsory purchase (CPO) powers to speed up the transformation. Council documents say the MDC will work with landowners and developers to understand their priorities and future plans.
Atom Valley is anticipated to give a £7bn boost to the regional economy through employment and investment. Now the MDC, led by business leaders and council bosses from Bury and Rochdale, would help push forward the project by using these powers to unlock land primed for transformation.
Much of the work on this project has been in the boardrooms of council offices and in planning meetings. But physical evidence that this major scheme has started is the Sustainable Materials and Manufacturing Centre (SMMC) – which is currently under construction.
Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham was there on a rainy November day in Rochdale to officially put the spades in the ground on the project. Located at Kingsway Business Park near the M62, the research hub is expected to become a catalyst for growth in advanced manufacturing, machinery, materials, and scientific research.
Building up industry around Kingsway is one of three key components of Atom Valley. The other key sites include Stakehill and the Northern Gateway.
Stakehill is land allocated for around 1650 new homes and 231 acres of new employment space for industrial, distribution and advanced manufacturing uses. The site is just off the A627(M) and provides direct access to M62 and M60.
There has already been movement on this section of the project, with plans for 314 new homes on land to the north and east of the Stakehill Industrial Estate being tabled last year. This would be the first of many developments coming to the Stakehill area under the overarching Atom Valley development plan. The other piece of the puzzle will be the Northern Gateway project – which is set to become one of the largest employment hubs in the region.
It is anticipated to drive substantial investment and up to 10,000 jobs into Greater Manchester. It also promises new homes straddling areas of Bury and Rochdale along the M60, M62 and M66 corridors. It features proposals for 6.5 million sqft of industrial space for the advanced manufacturing, industrial, and logistical sectors.
The Sustainable Materials and Manufacturing Centre (SMMC) that is set for Atom Valley(Image: Rochdale Development Agency)
Outline plans for the Northern Gateway’s giant industrial park were tabled last year by Northern Gateway Development Vehicle (NGDV) – a 50/50 partnership between land and property giants Russell LDP and Harworth Group plc.
When he officially launched the project last November, Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham described this as the start of a ‘decade of growth’ for the northern section of the city-region.
Speaking to a crowd at the ground breaking of the facility at Kingsway Business Park in Rochdale, Mr Burnham said: “This is a major milestone on our journey to be a world-leading city-region in every respect. I think in the future, we will remember being gathered here in the rain on a bleak looking day, hopeful of what today symbolises.
“This is a huge statement about how Rochdale has changed. I arrived on this building site and I saw a bowl of rocket and guacamole, if that doesn’t tell you Rochdale is changing, nothing else will.
“We’ve had 10 years of devolution in Greater Manchester. In that time we’ve achieved something others thought we wouldn’t, we’ve become the fastest growing city-region in the country.
“We’ve not seen enough change in Rochdale, Oldham, Bury, Wigan and Leigh – that’s why this is significant. Because the next decade of growth in GM is going to be a decade of good growth, where we lift every person and every place.”
Work has already started on the Simister Island upgrade project, which will be essential to help deal with the increased transport activity created by Atom Valley. Five lanes of traffic and a new link road will be created at Junction 18 in a bid to ease congestion, following official confirmation by the Department for Transport (DfT) last year.
Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham at Kingsway Business Park in Rochdale when ground was broken on the Sustainable Materials and Manufacturing Centre site(Image: Sean Hansford | Manchester Evening News)
Simister Island interchange, which connects the M60, M62 and M66 motorways, has long been earmarked for a massive change under National Highways proposals.
But Mr Burnham said a better public transport network would still be needed. That’s why the Atom Valley project already includes a plan to extend the Metrolink tram service in the area.
Back in November, Mr Burnham added: “You can’t be here and ignore the congestion on the M60 and M62. The congestion is a drag on productivity and it’s too hard to get across the country in that part and around the city-region.
“The Simister Island (junction 18) investment is good, but going into the budget my message to the government is that you can’t take GM’s growth for granted. We’ve got growth but to keep ahead of that you have to put in the infrastructure to support further growth.
“We’re still waiting to hear about the big infrastructure to support our railways. I don’t think we can carry on with the M60 as it is, because it’s overly congested all the way around.
“We need a plan for road and rail to support the level of ambition that is Atom Valley.”
The committee meeting on the Atom Valley Northern Gateway Mayoral Development Corporation was postponed last week. But it is expected to reconvene soon.
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