Plans to redevelop Lancashire’s iconic Botany Bay and turn it into an “industrial and commercial space” have been resubmitted.
Developer and asset management company FI Real Estate Management (FIREM) has this week revealed that it plans to push forward with former proposals to transform the former shopping mill just off the M61 near Chorley.
It comes after the outlet village scheme was first scrapped at the end of 2020.
Back in January 2019, FIREM unveiled the plans for a new development on the historic site set to redefine the borough involving a 37 hectare mixed-use scheme providing 300,000 sq ft of employment land, 288 luxury new homes, and a brand new 300,000 sq ft fashion and lifestyle outlet village – but in November 2020, FIREM said these plans had been axed “due to the continued decline in the retail sector”.
This was something it says has been “further compounded by the pandemic”.
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Now, following a virtual public consultation event in November, the developer has decided to resubmit the proposal for the 21-acre site, which is said to remain “largely unchanged”.
The plans for the scheme – which has been designed by MCAU and planning consultants, John Francis Planning – propose 405,386 sq ft of industrial and commercial space, which will deliver a total of 33 individual units for employment and commercial uses.
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FI Real Estate Management (FIREM)FI Real Estate Management (FIREM)
Within the plans, it’s said that 36,996 sqm of commercial floorspace will be designated for “light industrial uses”.
The wider space has then been allocated for landscaping, pedestrian routes, and onsite parking.
On top of all that, FIREM has also said that the regeneration plans for Botany Bay Business Park have the potential to bring hundreds of jobs to the local and surrounding areas.
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Speaking on the resubmitting of the plans this week, a spokesperson for FIREM said: “We’re confident that our proposals for the redevelopment of Botany Bay are not only consistent with the site’s heritage but will also deliver a host of new job and commercial opportunities in Chorley.
“This sector in the North West has seen continued growth for a sustained period, even throughout the pandemic.
“We’ve already witnessed a growing interest in the business space offered by these units since our last announcement, having received a number of inbound enquiries from a variety of businesses”.
Featured Image – Geograph / Ian S
Business
Neil Young pulls out of ‘corporate controlled’ Glastonbury Festival
Danny Jones
Music icon Neil Young has pulled out of Glastonbury Festival 2025 after claiming it has lost its identity and is now under “corporate” control.
The 79-year-old singer-songwriter, widely considered one of the greatest and most influential to have ever lived, was due to play the festival as one of the legends named on this year’s lineup.
However, despite lots of excitement around the veteran being given the nod over others from what has largely been seen as a pop-leaning pool (at least according to the detractors) in recent years, Young has now decided to drop out of the festival.
Neil Young’s latest ‘NYA Times Contrarian’ post explains the decision to drop out of Glastonbury.Neil Young in 2023 Credit: Screenshot (via Neil Young website)/Per Ole Hagen (via Flickr)
“The Chrome Hearts and I were looking forward to playing Glastonbury, one of my all-time favourite outdoor gigs”, it reads. “We were told that BBC was now a partner in Glastonbury and wanted us to do a lot of things in a way we were not interested in.”
For context, the BBC has been partnered with Glasto since way back in 1997 and Neil Young has already headlined the festival back in 2009, so this shouldn’t exactly come as a surprise.
“It seems Glastonbury is now under corporate control and is not the way I remember it being. Thanks for coming to us the last time!”, he continues. “We will not be playing Glastonbury on this tour because it is a corporate turn-off, and not for me like it used to be.”
The message concludes with him hoping to catch fans at other venues and a simple “LOVE Neil – Be well”, but the tenor of the somewhat abrupt update is that the ever-opinionated and long-celebrated protest song-writer clearly believes the BBC‘s influence over the festival has now grown too strong.
Known not only as ‘Shakey’ and the ‘Godfather of Grunge’ but as one of the pioneering anti-establishment figures of a generation, the Canadian was previously in the headlines for demanding Spotify remove his music after taking issue with Joe Rogan’s anti-vax messaging on his show.
All that to say, the solo artist co-founding member of supergroup, Buffalo Springfield, is no stranger to taking on big business and companies if he feels he has good reason. Meanwhile, Rod Stewart will be performing in the coveted ‘Legends’ headliner slot at teatime on Sunday, 29 June.
Neil Young and the Chrome Hearts are looking set for a European tour this summer but if he’s taking on corporations and concerts under umbrella control, it seems unlikely we’ll see him at too many festivals or the likes of Co-op Live.
The better question is: do you agree – has Glastonbury Festival become too corporate and sanitised, or do you think it still upholds the same core values it had when it first popped up on Worthy Farm in 1970?
Featured Images — Ross Belot (via Flickr)/The Manc Group
Business
A dozen major new openings coming to Greater Manchester and beyond in 2025
Thomas Melia
GreaterManchester is already bursting at the seams with wonderful restaurants, shops and buildings, but surely we always have room to squeeze in more new openings each year.
As 2024 comes to a close we can celebrate some incredible Manc wins like, getting our own Jellycat store in Selfridges or the innovative K-beauty store, Pureseoul, which landed in Manchester Arndale in November.
2024 also saw the St John’s neighbourhood take shape, with openings like Fenix, Courts Club and Caravan well and truly up and running.
And of course, who could forget the launch of Co-op Live? The huge new arena has already hosted some seriously big names and there’s plenty more to come in 2025.
Manchester’s landscape is an ever-changing one and with the list below already STACKED (hint, hint), it’s safe to say it’s never a dull day for new openings in Manchester.
So here are all the major new launches you can get excited about in the year ahead.
Big new openings in Greater Manchester and beyond | 2025
1. Soho House – Old Granada Studios
The rooftop pool at White City House, the London equivalent.CGIs of Soho House Manchester.Arguably the mother of all new openings for Manchester in 2025. (Credit: Supplied)
It really is out with the old and in with the new, as luxury member’s club Soho House prepares to roost in the Old Granada Studios building.
Set to be a multi-storey hub featuring everything from restaurants to a rooftop pool, this extravagant destination is on track to be one of the most glamorous when it opens next year.
If you’re thinking of lying by the pool and taking an ‘Instagrammable moment’ stop right there! Soho House Manchester, much like its London counterpart, will have a strict no-phones policy, giving everyone complete privacy.
Its opening has been delayed several times over but it’s looking like 2025 will be Soho House’s year.
Alongside Soho House, this once booming TV news building is also welcoming some neighbours in the form of Mollie’s Motel, fit with a contemporary art collection and live music venue.
The Manchester site is trialling out a first for the Americana-inspired motel company as this is not only set to be their first city-centre location but also features studio suites, unlike their two other locations.
However, they aren’t losing all their authentic touches, this Manchester Mollie’s will have a classic diner stocking ‘New Yorker’ peanut butter and jelly pie.
Inside Chotto Matte, the new rooftop restaurant at Gary Neville’s St Michael’s development in Manchester. (Credit: Supplied)
A cross of Japanese and Peruvian delicacies, Chotto Matte is big on flavours and sophistication, with each guest treated to a ‘culinary journey’ through every dish they serve.
They really meant business with this restaurant as not only is it ‘high class’ it’s also high altitude, situated on the rooftop of Gary Neville’s St Michael’s development.
Not so much one of most exciting new openings in Greater Manchester but more a rebirth. (Credit: Oldham Coliseum)
Launching the careers of many of our favourite soap stars and breaking the hearts of many locals with its closure in 2023, Oldham Coliseum is ready to return to reign supreme once again.
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From Charlie Chaplin to Corrie greats like Bill Roache (Ken Barlow), this North West theatre has said hello to quite a few famous faces over the years.
After plans were announced not too long ago for a new multi-million pound but much smaller new site, it’s great to see this drama institution remain in its original and much-loved home instead, with a major refurbishment planned.
Opening in time for Christmas/Panto season 2025 – read more HERE.
5. Power Hall – Science and Industry Museum
The Light Lab at the Science and Industry Museum. (Credit: Science Museum Group)
Since 2019, this incredible part of Manchester’s Science and Industry Museum has been closed for restoration works and has been dearly missed by all visitors.
The plan for this renovation sees the Museum preserve its original historic elements while making way for new spaces for playing and learning in.
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There will also be a gantry crane connected to the Power Hall which towers an impressive 8 metres high and 72 metres wide, wow.
6. National Portrait Gallery Unframed – MediaCity, Salford
Two people looking at a portrait of Queen Elizabeth I at FRAMELESS Manchester. (Credit: FRAMELESS)
The London-based gallery is moving up North to create a ‘ground-breaking’ new experience which sees paintings in a completely new light, literally.
Some of the world’s most famous paintings are about to be brought to life in an immersive digital experience, in collaboration with FRAMELESS Creative.
The long-term partnership which will be based in Salford is bringing new art experiences to wider audiences via an all-new digital exhibition.
This site will be designed around an expansive open plaza which will house a large stage, perfect for all varieties of family-friendly events and shows.
This Oxford Road hotspot is bringing a much-loved concept for visitors and locals alike combining street food with live entertainment and bars, a perfect city centre attraction.
Treehouse Hotel has confirmed details of its first Manchester restaurant, and a new summer opening date. (Credit: Supplied)
Nothing like a bit of shrubbery to break up the grey-scale skyscraper landscape of Manchester and this next new opening has taken it to the next level.
If there’s one thing ‘Treehouse Hotel’ is doing well it’s branding, from the restaurant titled ‘Pip’ to the decked-out green interior and exterior, this place is a nature lover’s paradise and will majorly transform a building that’s been a bit of an eyesore for years.
Making its grand arrival to the massive hotel scene in Manchester, their website seems to hint at a Spring launch with rooms bookable from April onwards.
A CGI mock-up of what the latest space will look like. (Credit: Supplied)
Get ready to make way for a Yorkshire favourite as next up on this list is the highly-anticipated launch of The Cut and Craft.
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The steak and seafood specialists will be opening their first site in Manchester and North West as a whole in the spring – this being their third location to date after the OG spot in York and the second site in Leeds, which our Hoot team vouches for wholeheartedly.
With a grand former banking hall being renovated for the new premises over on the corner of Mosley and New York Street, you can expect high-end ingredients turned into gourmet goodness. We’re talking freshly-shucked oysters, caviar; beef tartare, king scallops, fish and chips, steaks and so much more.
Undouvtedly one of the most talked about new openings in all of Greater Manchester. (Credit: Supplied)
From two football stadiums to Victoria Baths, a Grade II-listed swimming pool, Manchester has a lot to say for itself, even more so with Stockport Pyramid, a Northern landmark which is soon to double as an Indian restaurant.
This iconic symbol of Stockport is about to undergo a miraculous transformation into an Indian restaurant and banquet hall, perfect for all foodies SK1 or further afield.
11. More Terminal 2 additions – Manchester Airport
Credit: Supplied
Yes, we know a lot of T2’s large-scale refurbishment has already been completed over the past couple of years, but with the second and final phase of the update already well underway, there’s still a lot more to come in 2025.
Set to be completed by the end of the year, there are still various new shops bars, and restaurants due to open in the coming months – another 22, to be more specific.
A total of £1.3 billion has been pumped into this much-needed and long-awaited renovation and once all is said and done, it will benefit roughly 80% of all passengers travelling in and out of Manchester airport. Maybe 2025 is the year it gets off to a real flyer.
12. Chester Zoo Lodges – Cheshire
A mock-up illustration of the planned safari lodges. (Credit: Supplied)
And finally, we couldn’t forget our neighbours just down the road. From a green space-themed hotel to a lodge that sees you face to face with all kinds of different animals, 2025 is making us all be at one with nature, and none of us are complaining.
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There will be four different styles of lodges all inspired by and themed around traditional timber African safari lodges, with the first plans submitted in 2022.
Some of these incredible new staycation suites overlook a refreshing lake while others are set next to an enclosure full of free-roaming giraffes.
The Manc -
20th April 2021 
