Bridgewater Heights (also known as Liberty Heights, Wakefield Street Tower, or 17 New Wakefield Street) is a skyscraper apartment building in

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The ...

, England, west of

Oxford Street Oxford Street is a major road in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, running from Tottenham Court Road to Marble Arch via Oxford Circus. It is Europe's busiest shopping street, with around half a million daily visitors, and ...

. 17 New Wakefield Street was designed by local architect

Stephen Hodder Stephen Hodder (born 1956) is an English architect who won the RIBA's Stirling Prize in 1996. He is also a partner at his own practice Hodder Associates which was founded in 1992 in Manchester.

in a clustered architectural form and was completed in September 2012. The skyscraper is situated adjacent to Oxford Road railway station, on the corner of Great Marlborough Street. The skyscraper is 37 storeys high at a height of 109 metres (358 feet) and as of 2022 is the joint 13th-tallest building in Manchester alongside Oxygen Tower 1 in Piccadilly.

History

Four development schemes were proposed for the site in four years. Plans for a 65-metre residential tower were proposed in 2006 featuring a design similar to the tower being built. However, despite obtaining planning approval, the proposal was abandoned. In December 2009, the project was revived with a plan for a 106-metre residential tower. A planning application was made in early 2010, and planning consent granted in July 2010. Construction work began weeks after consent was granted. By November 2011, the tower had risen in height considerably, and on 18 April 2012, the tower had its topping out ceremony at a height of 109 metres. Upon opening, the building was named Student Castle, later renamed to Liberty Heights, and finally Bridgewater Heights.

Architecture

17 New Wakefield Street is a residential development of high rise flats aimed at young people and students. At 109m high it was the tallest, purpose built student accommodation in the world, until being over-taken by Altus House, in Leeds, UK. It is the third tallest building in Manchester by roof height and the joint 43rd tallest nationally. Its apparent height is accentuated slightly by its position on a slope. The tower has some resemblance to the Mathematics Tower which also had a clustered exterior but was controversially demolished by the

University of Manchester The University of Manchester is a public university, public research university in Manchester, England. The main campus is south of Manchester city centre, Manchester City Centre on Wilmslow Road, Oxford Road. The university owns and operates majo ...

in 2005. The project has 525 bedrooms in four stepped towers built on a foot area of 7,000 square feet. Plans for a residents' car park were rejected by planners concerned about the impact of a large building and busy location. File:17 New Wakefield Street under construction, August 2011.jpg, August 2011 File:Wakefield Street Tower construction Dec 2011.jpg, December 2011 File:17 New Wakefield nearing completion.jpg, March 2012 File:29.5.16 Manchester Oxford Road (27345159025).jpg

References

External links

Planning application for Wakefield Street TowerStudent Castle Manchester
{{Authority control Buildings and structures in Manchester Residential skyscrapers in England Skyscrapers in Manchester Residential buildings completed in 2012