Proposals for more than 600 upmarket apartments on the southern edge of Manchester city centre are to go before planners on Thursday - but despite planning rules, they include no affordable housing.

The huge development, next door to the HOME arts venue, will more or less complete the vision for a huge overhaul of the First Street site , in the shadow of the Mancunian Way.

It would add 624 one, two and three-bed flats - split into several blocks - with their own ‘podium’ gardens, gym and private dining room, to the plot, with 85 parking spaces and a cycle space for each resident.

Image of new development on First Street South.
How the development could look

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Officers are recommending the development, all intended for private rental, for approval, but want to waive the rule on cheaper housing.

Manchester council’s official planning policy is that 20pc of all new units, where a development is above a certain size, must be ‘affordable’.

However - in common with most other major housing projects put forward in the city centre in recent times - the developer claims that would make its plans unviable and officers have accepted their argument, stressing the need for the site to be regenerated and pointing to the cost of the ‘high quality’ building materials expected by the town hall.

Image of new development on First Street South
Image of new development on First Street South

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That comes despite increasing concern among backbench councillors over the lack of affordable housing provision in the city, including in the huge new skyscrapers and clusters of apartments springing up in the city centre.

As well as the flats, permission is also sought to allow a nursery, creche or GP surgery, or all three, in one of the blocks, while the developers also hope to see a bike cafe open somewhere on site.

In between the blocks they have designed a ‘mews’ style narrow street and new public square, along with a raised pedestrian walkway linking it with the existing mixture of offices and leisure venues already built on the other half of the site.

Image of new development on First Street South
Image of new development on First Street South

At its height the new development will be 26 storeys, dropping to eight at its lowest.

No objections have been raised to the application, although Transport for Greater Manchester have requested the developers make a contribution towards a new cycle crossing across Medlock Street.

The plans are due to go before the council on Thursday afternoon.