IQ Student Accommodation’s 2,500-unit reimagination of its Weston Hall and Pendulum Hotel site on Charles Street will deliver five buildings in total, including two more towers of 32- and 24-storeys.
The 50-storey element would be delivered in phase one alongside an 18-storey effort and a nine-storey link building. Phase two would see the 32- and 24-storey towers come forward.
Around 0.8 acres of landscaped public realm is planned as part of the development, which also includes amenities such as a gym, study lounges, and dining rooms.
To make room for this cluster of tall buildings, all the existing buildings on the site would be knocked down.
There are 528 student beds and 120 hotel rooms at IQ’s Charles Street site at present.
The redevelopment, if approved, would see a significant densification of the plot, providing a net increase in excess of 2,000 rooms.
Plans for the Charles Street project are being worked up alongside planner Turley and SimpsonHaugh Architects. Civic, Planit, and Cumming Group are also advising.
The site is located between two large Bruntwood SciTech developments; Circle Square on Oxford Road and Sister, the redevelopment of the former UMIST campus into a 4m sq ft innovation district.
IQ first trailed the plans for its Charles Street site in 2020 when it consulted on a development framework encompassing its Manchester holdings.
The framework set out plans for both Echo Street – a 1,200-unit scheme currently on site – as well as the Weston Halls and Pendulum Hotel site.
A vision for a 55-storey tower on the corner of London Road and Granby Row also featured in IQ’s 2020 thinking.
Overall, IQ operates more than 3,600 beds across 10 sites in Manchester.