I used to live in Manchester for about 10 years from the mid 1970s to the mid 1980s. Whatever views one may have on the merits of individual buildings, there can be no doubt that the City centre has been utterly transformed. I can recall a time when central Manchester felt like a city in terminal decline - everyone was moving out to suburbs and the Arndale had cleared out all the shops from many other streets (like Oldham Street). Huge areas were derelict and few even ventured into the city at night. Nearly the whole of Oldham Street was empty, the Northern Quarter derelict and all the areas around Deasngate and the Canals and all the big buildings near Canal Street and down to oxford Road empty hulks. The only residential properties were a handful of flats on the roof of the Arndale and a short street of town houses close to Deansgate. I am amazed and stunned to see the transformation into such a busy and thriving city. I never thought I would see such a change. Keep going Manchester!

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Thanks, great to hear your viewpoint and unique angle on things. I remember in the 70s and 80s, there was a lot of dereliction around Manchester and I found it an interesting photographic subject. I also remember however that the city centre had an incredible vibe and nightlife. The Hacienda turned into what was reputed to be the most famous club in the world, many groundbreaking and world-famous music acts emerged out of the dereliction, such as Simply Red, The Smiths, Buzzcocks, Joy Division, New Order and many others. Will any world-class music acts come out of the new, glitzy, gentrified, contemporary Manchester?

@Alan_GA

Ай бұрын

I need not add much more. You've hit the nail on the head. For decades Manchester City Centre was depressingly gloomy coupled up with the obviously crap weather. But from around 2010 onwards the visual change to the city centre began on a more accelerated manner.

@stubru16

Ай бұрын

I think they have ruined Manchester trying to turn it into another shithole London. They have built apartments for the wealthy while the locals cannot afford to rent or even buy them. apart from southerners

I really do hope that viaducx 2 tower is approved! 241m will look amazing and the design is different and cool. Fingers crossed it gets the go ahead

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

I would be surprised if it wasn’t approved. The plans look good to me. I like tall buildings. The highest I lived in was the 19th floor in Thorn Court Salford and the tall block we lived in in Abu Dhabi.

I reluctantly left North Wales for Manchester a few years ago because I could see no future for my children in Wales and Manchester seemed such an ambitious city. Best decision we ever made. My children are now adults and have great careers with many friends. Speaking to friends and family back in Wales pretty much all of them say how there young adult children can’t find work or meaningful jobs with little prospect of leaving home. I guess our gamble paid off.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Your story is no different from my parents, who grew up a little further west, in south west Ireland. They emigrated in the 1950s to Manchester. My mother had a friend in Stockport from the same town and so she went there. Although I love Ireland, I am very glad that I was born and grew up in Stockport, part of the Manchester conurbation. She also took me to Liverpool many times. There are certainly many opportunities for careers in Manchester. So thanks very much and diolch am fawr for your comment!

@stubru16

Ай бұрын

I’d rather live in wales than live in a concrete jungle . Money isn’t everything. I love Manchester but it’s turning into London and I wouldn’t want my children go grow up there especially with knife crime that is similar to London

It’s great to see how all the developments I’m involved with are do 😊

@AidanEyewitness

23 күн бұрын

The developments you’re* involved in? That’s very interesting! I’m curious to know which ones? 😀

@davidjb-750

23 күн бұрын

@@AidanEyewitnessI just have a minor part nothing fancy but I’m involved in pretty much every one. I get to see the plans pretty early but I’m still surprised when I visit the city centre to see how quick they go up.

Thanks for another great video Aidan!

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Thanks for your positive feedback and thanks again for your generous buymeacoffee contribution from last year. I have a personalised card with your name written on it. Please e-mail me with your address and I'll send it to you. aidan (at) aidan co uk Many thanks!

I love seeing all the bike lanes. The good thing about these developments is that it's increasing density in the city core and making cars less necessary.

@iamjoestafford

2 ай бұрын

I was walking around Deansgate-Castlefield yesterday and said to my mate that it feels like the city centre now has a world-class skyline but a third-world streetscape - the road surfaces and pavements are mostly dreadful, it is still far too car dominated and there is very little greenery - but I'm hoping the increasing amount of people living car-free lives there will lead to pressure being put on the council to improve things more quickly. Thankfully there are many more bike lanes than there were a decade ago - so hopefully in another decade we will see city centre residents able to cycle around on smooth car-free boulevards with trees and pavement cafes galore!

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Yes, Manchester City Council have made car access to Manchester city centre more restrictive, closing off streets and introducing 7-day parking charges till 8pm in the evening. However a lot of new bike lanes have appeared, including those on Deansgate, once a traffic-clogged street. I still get frustrated when I can't drive along my familiar routes of old, but I don't have that problem when I'm riding my Brompton!

@leod-sigefast

2 ай бұрын

@@iamjoestafford Agreed. The cracked paving and wavy, lumpy tarmac full of divots and potholes (replete with stagnant rainwater) really are 3rd world. As you say, the skyline is looking class but the streetscape is embarrassing - the litter and muck are also shameful. That is what people often notice first when arriving at a new city and something I wince at when showing new people around town. I am a Mancunian but spent a number of years living in Spain. I have to say they (mostly) blow us away when it comes to architecture and street-care: excellent quality paving and tarmac (I don't recall any patchwork road tarmac), clean streets regularly hosed down and street furniture that complements the city design. Get the streets sorted (and Piccadilly Gardens/Market Street!) and we may have a city to be really proud of!

@stubru16

Ай бұрын

Unless you want your bike stolen

@keggs73

2 күн бұрын

I'm a cyclist, however, the goal isn't to help us all of a sudden, it's to get rid of cars. The congestion charges will get worse increasing in both scale and price until only the rich will be able to drive freely. Enjoy the little things, be good, kind and good day to you.

Another great video! I live in the Gay Village and do my daily walks around the city centre so had also seen most of these, somehow I'd missed the ones near Strangeways, now I know where to walk tomorrow. :-)

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

There's plenty to see in the city centre! Many thanks for your feedback!

Office space shared with student flats sounds like the premise for a BBC3 comedy.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

They are in separate blocks side by side! You could be an undergrad in one and go on to work in the other! 😊

I wonder when a supertall will be constructed in Manchester or even Britain's new tallest tower, matter of time. Great video.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

That's an interesting question. Viadux 2 will be the tallest in Manchester but still not as tall as the Shard. Keep watching AidanEyewitness!

@AttillatheHun-ph5eu

2 ай бұрын

@@AidanEyewitness There are rumours of a 'Regent Park tower' at 264 meters, 24 more than Viadux 2.

@English_Dawn

2 ай бұрын

Salboy hope Viadux2 will be the tallest residential building in Europe.

I hardly know my own city these days, the way they are putting up the new builds is phenomenal

Superb video, really well-shot and edited, thanks for all your efforts to record these changing times. 👌😀

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Thanks very much for the positive feedback. All captured and mostly edited on the iPhone 14.

Great and informative video! Hoprfully thr really tall stuff will skirt thr city centre preserving its victorian and edwardian magnificence. Now all we need is to eclipse the Shard with the UK's tallest building!

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Thanks - there is one tall building that is not on the periphery and that's the tower of the St Michael's development. I'll be interested to see if its overshadows Albert Square. As for a taller tower than the Shard, we'll have to wait and see.

Great video 😊I have friends living there, beautiful place

Also, the two contour towers are beginning their ascent into the sky this week!

@English_Dawn

2 ай бұрын

Not Euan Keliie? 😉 Renaker's spokeswoman recently updated on Contours saying they have learned to provide "work-booths" for clients who rate them very highly indeed into today's PostCovid19/Working From Home world in the West. Contours look very high spec indeed internally. 👌

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Those are the ones between the Cylinder and Deansgate Square, thanks for the tipoff!

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

No not Euan Kellie, to whose book Rebuilding Manchester, I contributed 107 photos!

@English_Dawn

2 ай бұрын

Thank you.

Adrian, hope you're well! Got some stuff hot off the press as regards your 325 Deansgate development, visually. The architects have changed it. 🔹 It is going to be 2ft higher. I'm a furlongs, yards and feet man, none of this centimetres twaddle! 🔹Due to the 200 year old "The Deansgate" pub they have (at last) decided to pay homage. The red finish in your visualisation ist jezt kaput! They are planning a brick effect finish to complement "The Deansgate". The upper floors are to be white glazed terracotta tiled. No doubt you were aware of the white glazed tiled finish of neighbouring railway arches at street level, though the building of the Beetham Tower meant there are less railway arches than previously. Your shoe shine guy may have told you that Domis have been busy too. They have apparently been doing ground work on your Vision building on Whitworth Street West and Fusion's Deansgate South Student Tower (wedge-shaped). Also your Obsidian on Trinity Way, Salford looks to have had the green light and is under starters orders, so you should be seeing things. I understand your mate Euan Kellie deserves a vote of thanks for getting the One Heritage Tower development over the line. He has done a lot for Mcr improvements. 😌👌

An excellent update, Aidan. Thanks for making the effort. I'm still taken aback by the amount of change taking place in Manchester. I worked as a surveyor in the city centre from about 1997 and up to Covid and dealt with many residential apartment blocks and other buildings and started coming into the city centre back in the early 1980's for nights out. The change would have been unthinkable back then. I still recollect driving into work as a surveyor and noticing a new timber hoarding having been erected around a car park (usually a levelled bomb site from WW2) over a weekend, or looking out of the office window and seeing a new tower crane, and scratching my head thinking "Was that there last week?" As I now work as a professional photographer, I enjoy going back into town to get photographs of the new (and remaining old) buildings which make fabulous black-and-white studies, if the light or weather is right. I have a pal coming over from the USA next week, and whilst he will be spending a lot of time in the Lakes and Yorkshire Dales doing landscape stuff, we will be meeting up for 3 days of shooting in and around Manchester. This video forms part of my research on new locations to shoot! A great video, keep up the good work!

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Many thanks for your positive feedback, and coming from a professional photorapher who has also worked in construction, I'm very happy to receive it. I've moved from a combination of photography and writing on my old website Eyewitness in Manchester, to a combination of video, still images, scripted voiceover and music (occasionally my own!). I must say I find cities like Manchester more interesting than rural landscapes, but that's just down to my appreciation of architecture and urban identity. Thanks for your words of support!

Great video of Manchester and how the town is growing ❤

Keep up good work

What a fantastic channel! As a proud Manc interested in architecture and development, glad I have found it. Cheers!

Beautifully documented, patiently researched & crisply narrated as always Aiden. Certainly worth all the work & effort you diligently apply to each & every production - keep up the good work! And ignore the guy that said it was too rushed .. pah! Some people 🙄

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Well that's a very positive appraisal. Nearly all the photography and editing is done on my iPhone 14 Pro, which I carry around discreetly. For final editing, I import the video onto the Mac to add music and titles. The narration is crisp because I speed it up by 10%! The research takes time and effort. So many thanks for your words of appreciation!

@alexhodge3812

2 ай бұрын

@@AidanEyewitnessNarrative sped up by 10%, well you would never know. The iPhone 14 is truly a great all round bit of kit, for this kind of well lit daylight footage you can’t even differentiate it from the ‘alleged’ higher end cameras - nice 👌

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

@@alexhodge3812Yes. It really suits my way of working. I love today's technology! It's not so good for night video shots though!

Very informative

Thank you always Aidan for your wonderful updates. ❤

Great video. See you on the road.

Thanks for making this. Very interesting.

Thanks for showing the project

Great one..❤️❤️❤️

It's nice to see your showing people these projects

Aidan I commute a lot to Leeds and there's some development there but mostly cheap looking small towers, and nothing on the same scale as Manchester. Manchester is positively vibrant in comparison. Why is it that Manchester seems to be unique in the UK in undergoing a city centre skyscraper boom? I love it. I know it's out of reach of a lot of people financially but nevertheless it does feel exciting to live in this City and it looks fantastic. The delivery riders will be looking forward to all the new flats.

@bordedup546

Ай бұрын

Probably the fact that they got a combined authority (and later metro mayor) earlier than most places and that the general demand for these projects is higher being UK's second city economically

@mazinnasralla2036

Ай бұрын

@@bordedup546 But there is no comparison. It's not like Manchester is no.1 closely followed by AN Other etc, it's completely off the scale.

@bordedup546

Ай бұрын

@@mazinnasralla2036 yea fair point, i'm not sure. i could be wrong but i'd imagine that in 10-15 years the other major cities (birmingham, leeds, bristol, newcastle, sheffield) should catch up, relative to their economies, when planning reforms kick in

@vonLaughter

Ай бұрын

Possibly, but on what level will Manchester be then?@@bordedup546

@paulwild3676

Ай бұрын

@@mazinnasralla2036Wages in the city of Manchester are now averaged at 50 grand a year. That puts it on par with wealthy Richmond Upon Thames in London. Birmingham wages are almost half that. It also has a very wealthy hinterland. Trafford and East Cheshire, are high wage economies, and they are economically dependent on it. Only London has that conglomeration of wealth.

Thanks for the video, going to rewatch this later. Always informative and interesting, the research you do is much appreciated

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Thanks very much for your supportive comments. The videos take time to produce, but it’s very satisfying when they are complete and I can share them with the world!

Thanks great video

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Many thanks for your feedback!

Great video many thanks!

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

That's great, thanks to you too for the positive feedback.

Thanks for that what you do 😊🙏

I really enjoy your videos! Like you said this needs to be documented keep up the brilliant work!

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Thanks for your great feedback and encouragement!

Awesome video!

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Many thanks for your feedack!

Love this

@AidanEyewitness

Ай бұрын

😊

I love it

Excellent video, Aidan. Really interesting. Thank you

@AidanEyewitness

6 күн бұрын

Many thanks, I appreciate your comment and sorry it took so long to reply!

An impressive run through!

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Many thanks, it was a nice ride around the city!

Good update 😎👍🏻

@AidanEyewitness

Ай бұрын

Thanks very much, good to hear.😊

Nice

Great video and looking forward to see how these will look

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Thanks very much indeed for your comments and watch out for that “17 Projects Revisited” video when they are all finished!

Nice presentation

Nice 👌

Informative video..

@AidanEyewitness

Ай бұрын

Many thanks👍🏼

Great insights

@AidanEyewitness

Ай бұрын

Many thanks for your feedback!

Hi mate, great video. The building you noted as Plot 10 is actually by Tim Groom Architects which is a student resi development. The jon matthews scheme (as per the visual) is unfortunately on hold

@AidanEyewitness

Ай бұрын

Many thanks for the correction. It’s difficult to get all the facts right, there’s a lot of information. Thanks for your positive words.

Very interesting

@AidanEyewitness

Ай бұрын

Many thanks!

😮 wow

It looks like Manchester has a future!

Do Liverpool mate

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Yes, I have two videos in preparation: New projects that will change LIverpool and The Baltic Triangle. Online soon.

Manchester, a booming city that looks just like every other 'booming' city.

@AidanEyewitness

Ай бұрын

Thanks for your comment.😊

I never heard this term 'co-living cluster' before but it seems like half the buildings will be structured around them ... interesting ... I wonder how this will translate into real life accomodation?

@buy.to.let.britain

2 ай бұрын

thats right. they are called prison wings.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Well, it's like student accommodation but carried over into your early professional life. I would like to visit and take a look at the accommodation (though I won't be moving in!)

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

I think there's a bit of a difference between serving time in Strangeways and being a resident in Waterhouse Gardens!

@buy.to.let.britain

2 ай бұрын

£915 a month@@AidanEyewitness

♥️♥️

I wonder how many developments kicked off on the back of HS2 approval and are now feeling a revaluation. Mirroring London, a lot of these developments are being sold off-shore to foreign investment, and now, they are not even in a let option but in an Airbnb model, as the ROI on ABB can be higher than that of a traditional let. Sadder still is the possibility of a lack of or severely reduced local ownership, which will force locals into rented options and make areas increasingly transient. The risk is essentially the London model, with hundreds of residential units empty for a large % of the year. You can check the office locations for the One Port St. development as an example of where these developments are being marketed. A colleague of mine already has an Airbnb in Birmingham by the HS2 new terminal and was looking at Manchester but is reconsidering, given the decision.

@AidanEyewitness

Ай бұрын

That’s very interesting. I hadn’t thought about it in this way. What’s done is done, Manchester won’t get a high speed rail connection - unlike Birmingham, Barcelona or Brussels. We’ll just have to see how things pan out. Many thanks

“Ornate, Grade II residence…….. belongs to His Majesty” - made me smile.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

“A conveniently located period co-living residence with excellent security features and attentive staff.”

@donquixote3927

2 ай бұрын

@@AidanEyewitness I’d hate to have a room overlooking the brewery.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

@@donquixote3927 Boddingtons Brewery is not there now. The college and Waterhouse Gardens are built on the site of the brewery. However I think some apartments will have a view towards the prison.

@donquixote3927

2 ай бұрын

@@AidanEyewitness I know this because I watch your stuff and used to get the 156 :-)

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

@@donquixote3927 Ah yes, understood!

You should ask place north west to post your video on their website.

These days Beetham Towers dosent look so lonely. It had always looked utterly ridiculous juxtaposed against the majority shorter, victorian commercial buildings.

@AidanEyewitness

Ай бұрын

That is a point! It needs companions, like a person, together forming a skyline.

How about the one im waiting for, tear down the Piccadilly Hiotel and the building that destroyed the gardens and return to something elegant and a full square that is just green and beautiful and not a bus station and drug den

Just a bit worried how all these new skyscrapers will be viewed in 20 to 30 years time and beyond ? Will they be viewed with awe like we do say with Manchester Town Hall , Central Library, John Ryland’s library, and Cheethams ?

Co op live arena? Granted it is on the outskirts of city centre

@AidanEyewitness

6 күн бұрын

It’s 20 mins on foot and about 10 mins by tram 😊

One of the few UK cities where it's now easy-ish to find a modern 50m² apartment as you'd expect in Madrid, Frankfurt, Seoul, Tokyo. 19th century terraced houses and semis can be fairly unpleasant places to live. Hopefully we're finished with this image of apartment buildings equating to blocks of council flats.

As for a an underground station at Picc for Andy Burnham I'm not holding my breath. Probable fantasises like this are commonplace with Mcr. Northern Powerhouse Rail a.k.a. HS3 is probably due to hit the buffers like HS2. Mark Harper state minister, says £17 bn has been approved for NPR out of the wreckage of the Northern Legs of HS2. Liverpool to Warrington (re-opening low-level, which used to serve Stockport) then Mcr Airport, then Mcr Piccadilly before a new route to Hull/York etc. All for seventeen billion! You could swallow seventeen billion on the underground tunnel from Mcr Airport to Mcr Piccadilly alone. Compare the cost to Crossrail in London.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Many thanks for the information. I am looking forward to the new line between Manchester and Liverpool, though how many decades it will take to complete remains to be seen!

@English_Dawn

2 ай бұрын

To be honest, there are two extant Liverpool Manchester lines, the original Liverpool & Mcr line via St. Helens and the Cheshire Line Committee line which originated from Central and runs via Warrington Central. There was a third line the Lancashire & Yorkshire Railway line from Victoria to Liverpool Exchange. Liverpool Exchange has been replaced by Moorfields but the line is usable if they removed buffers at Kirkby (?). The official last day of steam in '68 featured Liverpool Exchange for the last train.

I find your video's very interesting and appreciate the time and effort you put into this. It's all impressive in terms of size. It looks like a booming city. But does this architecture (or lack thereof) make the city more beautiful? I don't think so, except for a few projects like the brown brick building. I see a lot of soulless gray glass and concrete boxes. It feels like modern architecture from decades ago which has proven to be unsustainable and disliked by most people. Either way, I hope the people from Manchester like this architecture. One positive thing is that there will be more housing for people.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Many thanks for your positive feedback and appreciation. People often use the word ‘soulless’ to describe the new towers. Well there’s no going back now. We’ll just have to see how it’s all looks when it’s finished. I agree it’s good that more housing is being built, though the housing featured in this video is aimed mostly for people on a higher income and/or those with large amounts to invest.

manchester needs whacky designs for its taller buildings all looks the same type of structure

@English_Dawn

2 ай бұрын

Yes a, pinnacle or two would be better I think.

Hey where did you hear news about the One Heritage tower going ahead ? I try to find news about it every couple of weeks online but I’ve not been able to find anything :/ I do hope it gets built.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

This article on Place North West has the information. PNW is a great source of information, I definitely recommend it. www.placenorthwest.co.uk/silverlane-in-the-mix-for-55-storey-salford-tower-scheme/

@user-pg3kl5zj3f

2 ай бұрын

@@AidanEyewitness ah I read that back in December 5 mo the old Easter has passed and nothing is happening now n the site :(

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Ah, okay well there has been no more news. From the comments on the article, it seems there are some ‘issues’ with this project. All we can do is wait for news. Many thanks and sorry I couldn’t help! 🙁

@user-pg3kl5zj3f

2 ай бұрын

@@AidanEyewitness no problem fingers crossed. Just really hoping it’s built it’s unique looking. We really need variety

Manchester city centre has been a building site for 30 years. At what point do developers run out of space to build? Must say i like the look of the Three60 tower. Gary Neville's latest project, Bootle Street St Michaels? Hmm. Rather less so. A little jarring.

@AidanEyewitness

6 күн бұрын

There’s always new space on the edge of the city centre and beyond.

My ancestors lived off Travis Street in the Shadow of London Road station. They weren’t wealthy by any stretch of the imagination. Also I fear PBSA’s are entering a property bubble as universities cannot keep on growing. I just hope the three towers are being built to be adaptable for affordable and young professional living.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

It was once a very lively and characterful district with many residents. Good point about PBSAs. It would be interesting if young professionals ended up living there. It's possible. Very good point, many thanks.

What is your sense on where flat building boom in Manchester is going over next few years? Up, down, flat? Also do you have an idea on the car/flat ratio. I imagine these new blocks have a few underground car parking spots but with only limited capacity? Is that true?

The Cylinder sounds far better than 360. If you ask a taxi driver to take you to the Cylinder, it would be easily identifiable. We are really poor at naming buildings in Manchester. Victoria North sounds punchy, as does Great Jackson, but 360? No Cylinder works better for me.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Well if people start calling it the Cylinder, maybe it will become the generally accepted name like the Gherkin in London. 😊

Great developments but parts of Manchester could do with a good clean

As far as the Contour Towers are concerned Renaker's spokeswoman said they have learnt what their target group want. Luxury and "work-booths". Look to see them in all Renaker buildings. SimpsonHaugh, are you listening! I think all Renaker towers have 85% or higher occupancy. All the penthouses are taken. Demand is so high, I think despite only being approximately at ground level she said for the Contours they will be taking £3,000 deposits.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Thanks very much for the information, as always. As a humble KZreadr, out of my league!

@English_Dawn

2 ай бұрын

@@AidanEyewitness Quite right don't get involved with a scramble for places. St. Michael's is a benchmark of luxury. Prices for St. Michael's Tower apparently range from £300k - £6m.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

@@English_Dawn The capitalist in me thinks all the expensive apartments and glitzy restaurants are good for the city, but the socialist in me thinks the poorer people who make up most of the residents ought to benefit from all the money pouring in.

@English_Dawn

Ай бұрын

​​​​@@AidanEyewitnessMcr has fundamentally changed. It used to be a city with a university like most. Now it is a university city numerically greater than Cambridge, Oxford, London and Paris. Every summer more graduates (over half stay in Mcr, two thirds of those prefer to live in the city centre) however 61% of graduates living in the city graduate elsewhere!!!! They seem drawn inexorably to the city. It is constantly replenished. Developers purposely market graduates and young professionals, they don't try to hide it. They are the pied piper. The city centre is de facto a giant student campus. It's a ~ quinoa society. Students (and music) a major part of the economy. I also read that the new homeowners have less disposable income after housing costs, than anywhere in the U.K. up there with London. So they are paying a heavy price literally. There is a conveyor belt though of new graduates pushing the market and towers getting larger. I understand Domis are pressing Relentless to add 2 storeys to St. Michael's Tower? You are right, what about the rest of society? Affordable housing? How many people also do you see with grey hair in the city centre? What happens in years to come when the 30-somethings en-mass want their slippers and rurality? When you started recording the changing scene how many city centre hotels were there? Probably count them on two hands with fingers to spare. Now. Explosion! Even "bijou" hotels, motels etc, you name it. Services are a bedrock. Chanel, MTV awards Mcr & Salford are a-changing. It's in the service industries probably were the jobs for poorer people will be too, unsocial hours likely.

Best video so far. What’s the project you’re most excited about?

@AidanEyewitness

6 күн бұрын

Thanks. Hmmm difficult question. I think I am impressed by the scale of the development as a whole, rather than any one project

At 2.22. Terracotta and glass and steel are de rigeur at the moment, beginning to look like Spanish and Italian cities. For "contrast" check out the Kingfisher-Blue Colloco Tower in St. John's? 😱

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Very interesting. Thanks for the tipoff! Colloco looks good. www.thebusinessdesk.com/northwest/news/2129840-green-light-for-16-storey-city-centre-office-development

Blimey, at this rate MCR is going to overtake London when it comes to tall buildings

@AidanEyewitness

Ай бұрын

That could happen, let’s see if it does.

What I can see is that the buildings are mostly residential or student housing developments. Few office buildings and no hotels. I wonder why no hotels.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

They have already been quite a few hotels built. Staycity Apartments is a kind of hotel. Some developers have switched from office to residential as more people are working from home. The former BT building & Macdonald Hotel on London Road is being converted into a hotel. The new building proposed for the empty plot on Piccadilly next to the old bank building which I featured before will be an aparthotel. Many thanks for your comment.

@AlbertoDeniaCerezo

2 ай бұрын

@@AidanEyewitness You are welcome. Thank you for your videos.

@English_Dawn

2 ай бұрын

Yes as Aidan says some office buildings will be built. Mainly Grade-A environmental BREEAM types. The world has changed after Covid19/Working From Home. It's across the Western world. The Lamington Tower like he says, is due to be built next to the listed but derelict bank in Piccadilly. The country's first Net Zero hotel but is at the public consultation stage prior to being awarded planning permission. Students are "king" in Mcr and likely to remain so ~ both undergraduates and graduates. It's were the money is, apart from footballers. Check out MCFC's 9-storey hotel under construction at the stadium.👷🚧 Students are the main drivers for many of the towers springing up and what the developers target.

@AlbertoDeniaCerezo

2 ай бұрын

@@English_Dawn I see! Thank you for the insight. Interesting that in Manchester the money is with the students apart from footballers only.

@English_Dawn

2 ай бұрын

Yes, Mcr is to go to place for students, domestically and internationally in Europe in greater than numbers than anywhere else and the retention rate (people getting jobs) high 51% of local students plus more students graduating outside Mcr. World travelled Pep at MCFC loves Mcr too, Bueno.

I left Manchester in September 2008. Beetham tower was the only skyscraper and I thought it looked great despite not really fitting in. I think that there are too many ugly buildings going up that could be anywhere. That one with the brick frontage was nice but most are hidious,soulless and will degenerate into ghettos with no sense of community. Glass and concrete prisons. The actual prison is much better looking!

@AidanEyewitness

Ай бұрын

Well, it remains to be seen whether these projects will degenerate into ghettos, like the subsidised housing ‘projects’ in the United States. I intend to keep an eye on how things pan out. Many thanks for your comment!

*none of these developments allow the carrying of brass knuckles in the premises.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

I'm glad to hear that!

Err no. Nothing will happen if HS2 isn't built in full. It would be pointless and solve nothing. Thanks for the great video.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

That's what I thought, but read this: www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/real-breakthrough-manchester-piccadilly-underground-28882937

@English_Dawn

2 ай бұрын

​​​@@AidanEyewitness Sad but perhaps a "slow news day". Your first instinct was probably correct and the instinct of most people. Remember Northern Hub! See my other answer please, as regards costing. Andy Burnham isn't perhaps the sharpest tool in the box when it comes to transport. He ruled out Metrolink building a line from St. Peter's Square to Mcr's main hospitals, universities and many other institutions, down Oxford Road, which is one of the city's highest Income-earning districts (1/5 th), night-time economy and would connect them to the Airport, main stations, Media city etc, despite it once being a major trunk route until the '40's!

Massive concrete bloc's everywhere,I'm just not sure about this as it seems very dehumanising.I hope I am wrong.

@markuserikssen

2 ай бұрын

No you're not wrong.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

Please keep in mind these are construction sites and we are seeing mostly the concrete skeletons. I think we need to wait until they’re completed before giving a final judgement. Many of them will have glass facades. I am planning a video of the same set of buildings, following the same route, when they’re all complete, in the not too distant future. Then it will be “make your mind up time“! Many thanks for your comment.

@markuserikssen

2 ай бұрын

@@AidanEyewitness I get what you mean but I didn't mean the concrete skeletons itself, of course. I'm mainly talking about the projects that were finished or the renders that were shown. In my opinion, big glass facades are not always that sustainable or beautiful. But it's fine if others have different perspectives.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

@@markuserikssen ​​⁠It’s a fair point. A few years ago they were saying tall buildings are unsustainable and the future is low rise but that seems to have changed, I’m not quite sure why. Personally, I love tall buildings and have had great times living in them!😊

@markuserikssen

2 ай бұрын

@@AidanEyewitness I guess investors have found a way to make more money. That's what I see when I see these giant soulless towers. Sorry for being so negative. 😅

All these new buildings in Manchester are turning into a soulless city, Liverpool, Edinburgh and Bristol are much prettier.

@markuserikssen

2 ай бұрын

Amen to that!

Most of these towers look banal, very uninspiring and as always maximising money. Its always reflected in the architecture. Manchester should be careful not to repeat the mistakes made in the 1960s that still blights part of the city. Uk planning system is rubbish. People complain its restrictive but i think you can build whatever you like if there's demand. The Island is a great example though and more of that. Net zero is an added bonus.

@AidanEyewitness

Ай бұрын

Many thanks for your thoughts!

Sad that ordinary working class people cant afford to live in these new flats . Wonder how many will be bought with laundered foreign money . The place is going the same way as London .

Why the hell is there so many student accommodation buildings? Or is it a smokescreen for immigrants? I’m a salfordian btw, the city is not the same.

I’m afraid I find it all very ugly

@nickel7002

2 ай бұрын

Uglier than it was before?

@johannesimomoh5589

2 ай бұрын

Yeah you wish. There is nothing ugly hear. It looks more brighter and better

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

That's okay, all opinions welcome and this is the place to share them!

@English_Dawn

2 ай бұрын

​​@@AidanEyewitnessI wonder what Alfred Waterhouse would have thought of most of them! Lacking in gothic detail am sure he would have added spires and turrets to some!

That was so rushed with barely a glimpse of anything. Had you just spent a bit more time so our eyes could see everything for longer than two seconds..... Honestly!

@krishp21

2 ай бұрын

there this thing called a pause button, you can even go back and replay too! amazing tech.

@AidanEyewitness

2 ай бұрын

The whole point of this video was to capture a snapshot of all 17 major projects on the same day. If I had spent a bit more time on each location then the video would need to be at least half an hour long. I will return in future to cover some of the projects in more depth.