Receivers appointed for £125m Manchester tower

Vision was supposed to comprise 327 one-, two-, and three-bed apartments across 37 floors off Whitworth Street West – now, the project is stalled.

Joe Pitt and Ewan Mackie were appointed receivers to the special purpose vehicle behind the scheme – Vision Manchester – on 2 May. When approached for comment, Pitt said that they were still in the early stage of the process.

Vision Manchester’s sole director is Paul Rothwell, the man who was also behind Featherfoot Globe. Featherfoot Globe was an SPV that was to convert a 19th-century mill in Bolton into 150 apartments. It went into administration earlier this year.

Rothwell is also behind Empire Property Concepts, which was renamed MCIOD and went into administration in 2023. The company owed subcontractors and suppliers more than £500,000.

Vision had been in the works since 2015, when Brigantes submitted and achieved planning permission for the tower block, designed by Jon Matthews Architects. In 2021, Rothwell and EGCC Properties acquired the site.

EGCC Properties was no longer involved with the project as of October 2022. The company has received no benefit from funds created from the pre-sales for the scheme, according to EGCC Properties.

The charge that sparked the receivership came from Octopus Real Estate S.A.R.L. Octopus Finance was one of two companies that agreed a £9m bridging loan to support the project in 2021.

In recent years, Vision appeared to be making progress. Main contractor Domis was appointed in 2023, with enabling works for the £125m project starting that October. Domis was approached for comment.

Agents marketing properties at Vision include Thirlmere Deacon Property Investment, Alliance Investments, Rothmore Property, One UK Properties, Zuker Property, and TrackCapital.