Manchester councillors have voted down plans for a 17-storey tower block proposed just metres from the city's historic Marble Arch pub on Rochdale Road.
The McGoff Group's application sought to build the structure next to the grade II-listed boozer, which would have delivered 153 flats in total. However, significant concerns were raised about whether the pub, built in 1888, would survive the construction programme.
Concerns Over Pub's Survival
Speaking at Manchester council's planning committee on Thursday (October 22), a representative from the Marble Arch said: "During construction, conditions inside and outside the pub are likely to be intolerable for customers. Marble Beers have genuine fear that their business will not survive the construction programme."
For the McGoff Group, the application highlighted the benefits of new homes in the city centre, stating the proposal would 'bring together the essential ingredients of successful regeneration.'
Councillors Vote Against Proposals
Councillors rejected the proposals during a vote, raising concerns about the tower's impact on the pub and the lack of any on-site affordable housing in the scheme.
Jon-Connor Lyons, a ward councillor who spoke at the meeting, said: "This is a major development with 153 homes, yet it's not got a single home that is affordable on site. I recognise the viability evidence before us, but the absence inevitably reduces the public benefit of this scheme, and should carry real weight in the planning balance. Secondly, I remain deeply concerned about the impact on the grade II-listed Marble Arch, this is one of Manchester's distinctive and much-loved historic pubs."
Funding and Further Concerns
Proposals to develop land next to the pub were backed by a £27m loan from the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, which was part of the Good Growth Fund in May. Concerns were also raised at the planning committee meeting about homes in the tower overlooking the Marble Arch beer garden, and the potential impact that could have in future if the tower was approved.
Richard Kilpatrick, a Lib Dem councillor on the planning committee, said: "It's frustrating that yet again we have a site here that is impacting a community asset and in return it can't even provide on-site affordable housing in an area that is desperate for it. I'm really disappointed it has come to us because I think we need to be pushing much harder on this stuff."
A Manchester council official responded to the affordable housing concerns saying 'the numbers are what the numbers are', and pointed out that there had been an independent viability assessment about affordable housing, which found the plans could not sustain any on site.
