A Salford retail park with McDonald’s, KFC, and a Grosvenor Casino could be demolished to make way for a ‘vibrant’ waterfront neighbourhood with hundreds of new homes.
The businesses are based at the Riverside Retail Park by Regent Road and Ordsall Lane, which has been picked as the centre of a huge regeneration project.
Plans for the site by Imco Holdings Ltd and Forshaw Group include building a total of 808 apartments spread across three new buildings, with one, two and three bedroom properties.
A two-storey Pavilion building is also proposed which could bring new shops and hospitality to the area, as well as create space for businesses and hosting community events.
Bosses behind the plans claim it could bring more than 1,900 new residents to the city and create new jobs, with an expected boost of £23m for local shops and services, and pump £1.7m a year into Salford council’s finances through council‑tax.
“Riverside Place, Salford will breathe new life into this brownfield site, drawing upon the area’s rich history and local character, while paying homage to its past as the former Globe Bottling Works,” a spokesperson for the project said.
“The Pavilion building creates a genuine opportunity to provide new facilities serving both the development and existing community, while opening up the riverside for everyone to enjoy.”
The plans are also aiming to ‘open up the River Irwell’ and transform the area from a ‘car-dominated retail site’ into somewhere for people to walk, meet and relax.
This includes a landscaped ramp and tiered seating to connect the proposed new homes to the existing riverside walkway, creating new pedestrian and cycle routes in the city.
An outline planning application for the scheme is expected to be submitted to Salford council this summer and could be decided later in the year.
The existing retail park is set to stay open until planning permission is decided, with the developers hoping to gain a seal of approval.
A public consultation on the regeneration plan is taking place until May 22, with a drop-in event at Silkbank Wharf on 21 Derwent Street, Salford, on May 13 from 3pm to 7pm.
If the scheme is approved, it could mark the start of huge changes in the area, where there are separate plans to build 3,000 homes on part of the existing Regent Retail Park located nearby.
Salford council is also working on plans to transform the land along the River Irwell into a ‘vibrant and accessible urban park’, with walking and cycling routes from Salford Quays to Peel Park.
