The £1.5bn Spinningfields development in Manchester city centre essentially forms the city’s new financial district. It provides about 430,000m² of prime commercial, residential and retail accommodation. 

Following the urbane model of commercial development established by schemes such as London’s Broadgate and Birmingham’s Brindleyplace in the 1990s, Spinningfields features a number of office-led mixed-use buildings arranged around a series of landscaped squares and public routes. As one might expect, most of these structures follow the glass and steel template that is the accepted visual language of contemporary commercial offices. So, it comes as a surprise to find a four-storey timber pavilion complete with trellises and overhanging facade plant boxes  located in one of the development’s key public spaces. 

Read more…