| Square Gardens | |
|---|---|
 Square Gardens in February 2025 | |
  Location within Greater Manchester | |
| Former names | Downing Living First Street Plot 11 First Street South |
| General information | |
| Type | Residential high-rise, commercial, leisure, retail |
| Location | Wilmott Street, Manchester, England |
| Coordinates | 53°28′18″N 2°14′41″W / 53.47156°N 2.24464°W |
| Construction started | 2022 |
| Completed | Phase 1: August 2024 Phase 2: March 2025[1] |
| Cost | £400 million[1] |
| Owner | Downing |
| Height | The Fernley: 139 m (456 ft) Acer Tower: 82 m (269 ft) Building A: 71 m (233 ft) Building C: 52 m (172 ft)[2] |
| Technical details | |
| Floor count | The Fernley: 45 Acer Tower: 25 Building A: 22 Building C: 17 |
| Floor area | 90,112 m2 (969,960 sq ft) |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | SimpsonHaugh[3] |
| Main contractor | Downing |
| Website | |
| squaregardens.com | |
Square Gardens is a co-living development in Manchester, England. The first phase of the scheme, Acer Tower, comprises 1,187 beds across 716 units which opened in 2024.[4] The Fernley, a 139-metre (456 ft), 45-storey residential building with 525 units, opened in June 2025 and is the 12th-tallest building in Greater Manchester as of January 2026.
The development will also provide 17,000 sq ft (1,600 m2) of commercial, leisure and retail space.[5] If fully constructed, the development will feature around 2,200 residential units in total across four buildings, which were designed by SimpsonHaugh.[6]
History
[edit]Planning
[edit]The planning application for four buildings of heights varying from 10 to 45 storeys was submitted to Manchester City Council in January 2020,[7][8] with planning approval obtained in September 2020.[6]
Construction
[edit]Enabling works on site started in January 2022, with construction commencing in March 2022.[9] Installation of the buildings' façades started in May 2023.[10] Completion of phase one was scheduled for August 2024, with phase two completed in March 2025.[1]
Facilities
[edit]The development includes a 3,000 sq ft (280 m2) café and 14,000 sq ft (1,300 m2) gym located within an amenity building which will be open to the public. Its landscaping proposals included the planting of 140 trees.[11]
See also
[edit]- List of tallest buildings and structures in Greater Manchester
- List of tallest buildings in the United Kingdom
References
[edit]- ^ a b c Kilgannon, Laurence (4 May 2023). "Milestone As Co-Living Scheme Named By Developer". Insider Media. Archived from the original on 24 April 2025. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ "Downing Living". Skyscraper Center. Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ "First Street South". SimpsonHaugh. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ Valentine, Charlie (18 September 2024). "Phase one of Downing's £400m Square Gardens co-living project complete". Place North West. Archived from the original on 19 November 2024. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
- ^ Patel, Bea (10 May 2023). "Square Gardens co-living scheme marks major milestone". BTR News. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ a b Whelan, Dan (23 January 2023). "Downing secures £227m loan for Manchester cluster". Place North West. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ "Planning – Application Summary 125573/FO/2019". Manchester City Council. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ Middleton-Pugh, Jessica (28 January 2020). "Gallery: Downing submits plans for 45-storey co-living tower". Place North West. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ Morby, Aaron (21 January 2022). "Enabling works start at £400m Manchester First Street". Construction Enquirer. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ Sell, George (5 May 2022). "Construction milestone for £400 million Manchester coliving scheme". Urban Living News. Archived from the original on 24 April 2025. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ Timan, Joseph; Davies, Ethan (1 January 2023). "New towers, a groundbreaking arena and loads of homes: The big list of what's coming to Manchester in 2023". Manchester Evening News. Archived from the original on 31 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
External links
[edit]- Official website
- Acer at Square Gardens
- The Fernley at Square Gardens
- First Street South at SimpsonHaugh
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