Plans for a new £50 million neighbourhood in Manchester’s Ancoats could see a disused storage depot turned into a new canalside district for city dwellers.
Submitted to Manchester City Council by developers Capital&Centric and Kamani Property Group, if successful they would see hundreds of new canalside apartments, townhouses and gardens take over the currently empty space.
Plans also include room for gardens and a new cafe bar or store, to be used by residents as a community hang out.
New images submitted as part of the plans show proposed designs for the new neighbourhood, which would include 193 homes with a mixture of 1 and 2-bed apartments, 3-bed duplexes and townhouses fronting onto Carruthers Street.
It’s the second collaboration between the two Manchester-based developers, who have teamed up to breathe new life into the historic site. If approved, work could start on site in early 2023.
Fusing together old and new, projected images should reassure local history buffs that the iconic Ancoats Works frontage on Pollard Street will be retained.
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Inside, meanwhile, new apartments will feature a modern twist on the red-brick buildings that have long dominated the area – the home of industry in Manchester for hundreds of years.
Further plans include restoring the unloved canalside, by creating a lush new garden with pretty lighting and lush foliage.
Speaking on the new development plans Adam Kamani, CEOat Kamani Property, said: “We think this community will be a really vibrant addition to Ancoats as it grows.
“The design strikes the perfect blend between old and new – retaining parts of the historic building with the iconic ‘Ancoats Works’ signage, whilst creating design-led homes on what’s currently a pretty unloved, industrial site.
“As well as new homes, we plan to deliver stunning outdoor spaces and improve the canalside, making the space much more welcoming with real character.”
Adam Higgins, co-founder at Capital&Centric, said: “At our communities in Piccadilly East and Kampus, we’ve seen first-hand that Manchester’s diverse neighbourhoods are attracting a real mix of people wanting to put down roots in the city.
“More and more, young families, retirees and downsizers are wanting to call the city home, as well as the more stereotypical young professionals.
“Ancoats Works responds to that, with a mix of townhouses and apartments to help foster a diverse neighbourhood, as well as spaces like the corner café bar and gardens where a genuine community can bond and grow. We’re excited about getting going.”
Submission of the Ancoats Works application follows community consultation last year. The collaboration follows the two companies joining up on plans for a site on Swan Street in the Northern Quarter, consented by Manchester City Council in 2021.
Feature image – Supplied
City Centre
You can now get Deep South-inspired BBQ dishes on Manchester’s Deansgate
Daisy Jackson
There’s a brand-new menu of smokehouse-style BBQ dishes being served up on a sunny terrace on Deansgate.
Motley, the neighbourhood bar and restaurant on the corner of John Dalton Street, has added an authentic smoker to its kitchen.
That means they’ve got a whole load of new dishes, slow-cooked over hickory wood, that are bringing a taste of a Deep South BBQ to Manchester city centre.
The smokehouse-style meats are all seasoned in-house and cooked for hours, for a perfect fall-off-the-bone experience.
It might be an authentic American smokehouse menu, but it’s firmly British too, with most products locally sourced.
You can now get Deep South-inspired BBQ dishes on Deansgate / Credit: The Manc Group
Motley are calling on local suppliers like Althams Butchers (established since 1856) for their meat, plus greengrocers R Noone and Son, and Cheshire Farm for their real dairy ice cream.
Signature dishes on the new menu at Motley include slow smoked brisket, seasoned in Motley’s signature rub before being slow-smoked for more than eight hours.
There’s also a beef short rib with a chimichurri sauce, and a pork belly strip that’s seasoned with sage and onion and finished with a panko breadcrumb crust.
And for the veggies, there’s a vegan smoked veg kebab with courgette, mushrooms, bell pepper, sweet corn and red onion drizzled with homemade BBQ sauce.
Motley has added an authentic smoker to its kitchen / Credit: The Manc Group
Prices across the board start from just £16, served with beef dripping fries, rainbow slaw, pickles and homemade beef gravy.
As for small plates, you can expect short rib bonbons, homemade corn bread, spicy chicken wings, bang bang cauliflower, mac and cheese, and frickles.
House favourites like steak, vegetable hash, salads, and burgers will remain on the Motley menu.
Victor Gonzalez, food and beverage manager at Motley, said: “Our new signature smoked dishes are all crafted and seasoned in-house then slow cooked for hours over hickory wood to create rich and smoky melt-in-your mouth flavours.
“From our slow-smoked brisket to our home-made sides, everything has been carefully crafted to bring an authentic taste of the deep south to Manchester and we can’t wait for guests to try it.”
Motley can be found at 2 John Dalton Street on the corner of Deansgate in the city centre.
Featured Image – The Manc Group
City Centre
Phoebe Bridgers announces long-awaited return with HUGE phones-free arena gig in Manchester
Emily Sergeant
It’s official, Phoebe Bridgers is back on earth.
More than six years since her last studio album, Punisher, was released to the world, cementing her status as one of indie folk’s leading figureheads, Phoebe Bridgers has given fans the news they have been waiting so patiently for.
A new tour North America and EU tour is on the horizon, and she’ll be stopping off here in Manchesterlater this year for a huge arena gig.
Following a sold-out acoustic show at New York City’s Madison Square Garden last night (4 June), Phoebe has now revealed details of ‘The Lost Tour’ for 2026.
Other than the series of surprise pop-up acoustic shows that have wrapped around the country over the last few weeks – beginning in Roswell in New Mexico on 8 May, and continuing on to smaller venues in other US cities before culminating in last night’s dazzling MSG show – this upcoming full band tour marks the first Phoebe Bridgers shows since early 2023.
Phoebe will be taking to the stage at Co-op Live here in Manchester for one night only on 26 November 2026 – with tickets going on sale next week.
And just like the pop-up shows, the use of mobile phones, cameras, and other recording devices will be strictly prohibited on this tour, encouraging fans to be more present in the moment.
This means the Co-op Live event will utilise secure pouches to store all devices during the performance.
Phoebe Bridgers is playing a huge arena gig in Manchester on her UK tour later this year / Credit: Supplied | Raph PH (Wikimedia Commons)
Upon arrival, all phones, smartwatches, and related accessories will be secured in these pouches, the pouches will be unlocked at the conclusion of the show, and any guest observed using a non-permitted device during the performance will be escorted out of the venue.
If the news of Phoebe’s return wasn’t exciting enough for fans as it is, she won’t be the only one making a highly-anticipated return to the stage, as support on the UK & EU leg of the tour is to be provided by former Black Country, New Road frontman, Isaac Wood.
Wood stepped away from the ensemble band – and the limelight as a whole – right before the release of BCNR’s critically acclaimed second studio album, Ants From Up There, in 2022, citing mental health reasons.
Phoebe has also partnered with PLUS1 so that €1/£1 from every ticket sold on the European tour leg goes to local organisations throughout the EU/UK working to support those impacted by sexual assault and violence.
Phoebe Bridgers will be playing Co-op Live as part of ‘The Lost Tour’ on Thursday 26 November 2026.
Tickets officially go on sale first through the Phoebe Bridgers Pass Presale via Fan3, and Co-op Member Presale starting at 10am on Wednesday 10 June, before general sale then begins on Friday 12 June, again at 10am.
Georgina Pellant -
25th March 2022 
