Vita lines up second Water Street tower

The developer is progressing plans for a 36-storey building within Manchester’s St John’s district, to sit alongside a 32-storey block targeted at the co-living market.

The plots on Water Street were bought last year from Allied London, with planning consent for two 36-storey residential towers called Nickel and Dime.

Vita Group revealed it would be tweaking the approved designs for the buildings, and would bring forward the development as the first scheme under its Union Living brand.

The replacement for the Dime building, designed by Denton Corker Marshall, was revealed in October, as a 32-storey block totalling 388 flats of between two and four bedroom clusters. Bam is tipped to build the scheme, while Lendlease has constructed the basement as part of its wider role as construction partner for St John’s.

Vita is now set to hold a public consultation into its redesign of what would have been the Nickel building, replacing the previous planning permission for the 36-storey tower with “a building of the same height and largely the same footprint”, according to consultation leaflets.

The building forms “the second phase of Vita’s plans to bring new high-quality, innovative, sustainable and accessible accommodation to the St John’s area”.

The first tower is due to open in 2022, and rents would be targeted at salaries of around £21,000.

The building is the first of Vita Group’s co-living brand. Vita also delivers student accommodation, and PRS flats under its Affinity Living division.

The consultation event will be hold on Thursday 19 March, from 3pm-7pm at the Marriott Victoria & Albert Hotel.