Landmark 13-storey scheme approved last year to be resubmitted as nine storeys with its floorspace almost halved
Hawkins Brown’s proposals for a landmark new library for Manchester Metropolitan University have been cut by four storeys and the scheme’s floorspace almost halved in an effort to cut costs.
The original £90m replacement for the university’s All Saints Library was approved in February last year. It would have risen to 13 storeys with around 22,000sq m of floorspace.
But the university (MMU) put the brakes on the scheme earlier this year after admitting that the original plans had become unviable.
It said in a statement that the scheme’s design, which features a distinctive zig-zag-shaped facade, had been “developed prior to significant cost escalations within the construction sector”.
A new planning application is now expected to be submitted for a revised nine-storey scheme containing a maximum of 12,600sq m of floorspace, significantly smaller than the consented proposal.
Hawkins Brown has been kept on as lead architect but it is unknown if the scheme’s zig-zag facade will be retained in the new plans, which have been outlined in a scoping report submitted to Manchester council by the scheme’s cost consultant Deloitte.
A consultation on the new proposals will start next month with demolition of the existing All Saints Library due to get underway later this year.
A timeline for the submission of the new planning application is understood to be dependent on the outcome of the consultation but the university has said it wants the building to open to students in September 2030 - two years later than originally planned.
A MMU spokesperson said: “The refreshed vision and design of our new library will provide a vibrant learning, research, and collaboration hub at the heart of our campus, fostering creativity and engagement for future generations.
“We’re excited to share that Hawkins Brown, working alongside our dedicated original design team, are developing enhanced designs that better serve our students’ evolving needs.”
The university added: “The refinements to our original plans reflect our commitment to delivering the very best learning environment for our students. We’ll be engaging extensively with our community throughout this process to ensure the final design perfectly captures what our students need to thrive.”
The building approved last year was due to house around 3,800 study seats, a range of event spaces, bookable rooms, a prayer facility, wellbeing spaces, office space for library staff and 9,000 “linear metres” of books.
The original design team included specialist library architect Schmidt Hammer Larsen, with Turner & Townsend on board as project manager alongside planning consultant Deloitte and cost consultant Gardiner & Theobald.
Planit IE was also on the team as landscape architect while Buro Happold has multiple roles including structural and civil engineer, facade engineer, MEP engineer, fire engineer.
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