What future Chorlton? ........ no. 2 Ryebank Road

Now the discussion about building new houses on a much loved open space is not an easy one.

Ryebank Fields, 2015

Easy if you want to live close to where you were born and close to family, less so if you have come to treasure the place which could soon become a building site.

The land in question is Ryebank Fields that bit of open land at the bottom of Longford Road which for a big chunk of the 20th century bordered our old brick works, and before that was an area of pasture and meadowland.

During the 1930s it consisted of some clay pits and the lost “Cardiff Road”.

The site passed into the hands of the MMU and for decades was left vacant, but as nature abhors a vacuum the site has slowly been developing into a fascinating site for biodiversity covering 4.6 hectares.

The Isles, 1880s

And now given that debate I have returned to an earlier story* which featured an article by Stuart Marsden,

The history and natural history of MMU’s Ryebank Fields** which mixes the history of the site with a recent survey of the plant and animal life.

Written by Stuart it includes contributions from me and Lynsey Crellin an environmental consultant from The Environment Partnership (TEP), and together we “talk about the site, its history, and its current biodiversity value”.

Now this is one to read., which might help when contributing to the public consultation process.***

Location; Chorlton

Picture; The Isles, in the 1880, courtesy of Miss Booth, from the Lloyd Collection, and Ryebank Fields, 2015 Stuart Marsden

*Down at Rybeank Fields off Longford Road, with a belt of mature woodland some patches of native bluebells and a bit of our history, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/down-at-rybeank-fields-off-longford.html

**The history and natural history of MMU’s Ryebank Fields, Stuart Marsden's Conservation Research Group, http://stuartmarsden.blogspot.co.uk/2015/06/the-history-and-natural-history-of-mmus.html

***The public consultation will run till December 15 2017 and comments and observations can be left at www.manchester.gov.uk/consultations

What future Chorlton? ..... reflecting on what has been and is to come ..... no. 1 the Precinct

Now the Precinct has served Chorlton well and if it is now in need of a little tender care and attention that is only to be expected.

The Precinct, 2015

It was designed in the late 1960s and finished by 1973 and really is a piece of retail development of its time.

During its construction we lost sixteen properties which had been built in the late 19th century and a section of the historic Manchester Road which vanished under the car park.

To its detractors the Precinct is a closed place, which is locked up at night and faces inwards offering little from Barlow Moor Road, other than that expanse of tired grass while the central area is not an inviting place to sit and relax.

Manchester Road, 1894

Added to which there is Graeme House which is a brutal lump of a building too big and totally out of keeping with its surroundings.

All of that said I do like the Precinct, and even on a wet day in November it has lots going for it, from the mix of shops to the produce which occupies the space in front of Adams the grocers.

The plans for its redevelopment have tumbled off the table over the years but never materialised.

And now there are a fresh set of ideas which proposes a new residential led mixed use scheme.*

The document makes much of the buzz word “urban grain” talks of being pedestrian and cycle friendly and of promoting sustainable travel.

Manchester Road, Nicholas Road & Barlow Moor Road, 1958

And itoffers up more residential accommodation in an area which is very popular and I might add an area where property values are now so high that none of my children who were born here could afford.

Of course some will argue so what?

The market drives all, and anyway no one should assume that an accident of birth guarantees them a place in a “chick, quirky and desirable suburb”.

Well I disagree, but that debate I will leave for now.

What does concern me is the scale of the large block which fronts Barlow Moor Road.

If the artist’s impression is to be taken as the plan then the building running from Sunwick House which is now the bank down to Manchester Road rises above the surrounding skyline and sits awkwardly with the existing Victorian and Edwardian properties.

Leaving aside Graeme House the present Precinct does not overwhelm you.  It may appear boring and unimaginative but it is on scale that many will find comfortable.

Of course 40 years ago its critics will have pointed out just how uniform it was, differing little from similar developments across the country, lacking in character and totally out of place.

All of which may be true, but it is a criticism which could be made of the latest plan.

Well we shall see.

The public consultation will run till December 15 2017 and comments and observations can be left at www.manchester.gov.uk/consultations

Location; Chorlton;

Pictures; the Precinct,2015, from the collection of Andy Robertson, the area in 1894, from the OS for South Lancashire 1894, courtesy of Digital Archives Association, http://www.digitalarchives.co.uk/ and corner of , Manchester Road, Nicolas Road, Barlow Moor Road A H Downes, 1958, m18046, courtesy of Manchester Libraries, Information and Archives, Manchester City Council, http://images.manchester.gov.uk/index.php?session=pass

*Chorlton Precinct Development Framework Summary 2017