Rochdale Council agrees deal on Upperbanks site

Rochdale Borough Council has entered into an agreement with a leading property company to manage the rental of a brand new, high quality apartment complex which recently completed in Rochdale town centre.

The move means that the apartments, which are a mixture of studio, one and two beds, will hit the rental market within days.

Manchester-based urbanbubble has been taken on to let and manage the 242 apartments, which are part of the £60m Upperbanks development. The game changing development has created a new offer for the borough, which doesn’t currently have high quality private rental accommodation of this size and scale.

The apartment complex includes high quality communal areas, a concierge service and landscaped gardens. It sits alongside a 146 room Hampton by Hilton Hotel, which opened in September this year.

The development is steps away from the Rochdale Riverside retail and leisure complex in the heart of Rochdale town centre, which opened in 2020 as part of a wider £400m regeneration programme. It is also close to the Metrolink network and Rochdale train station, which operates six trains an hour into Manchester.

Councillor Danny Meredith, cabinet member for regeneration and housing said: “These fantastic apartments offer something brand new for Rochdale and demonstrate the really high quality of developments which are being delivered as part of our regeneration programme.

“I’m delighted urbanbubble is now on board. The apartments not only look fantastic, but they’re right in the heart of our newly regenerated Rochdale town centre, which has a great retail and leisure offer, as well as fantastic transport links. I’m confident that they’ll prove popular.”

Michael Howard, managing director and owner of urbanbubble, said: “The Upperbanks scheme has created high quality build to rent accommodation in the heart of Rochdale, which easily compares to the best on offer in Manchester, but at more accessible prices.

“This fantastic development really adds something new to the market here, creating even more choice for people looking to make Rochdale their home or for those who already live here and want something a bit different. We will be marketing these properties very soon and we expect levels of interest to be high.”

The apartments are expected to appear on Rightmove in the coming days and the urbanbubble team have plans to create an Upperbanks website in the new year, which will contain more information on the apartments and how people can find out more and register their interest.

The Upperbanks scheme has attracted more than £20m of external funding, with over £17m from the government’s Future High Streets Fund and over £3m from the GMCA Brownfield Development Fund. It was delivered by RDA on behalf of Rochdale Borough Council, with Willmott Dixon acting as the main contractors.

By Mark Adair – Correspondent, Bdaily

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