There’s a plan to fix Piccadilly Gardens but we can’t afford it

The council demolished a section of Piccadilly Gardens' concrete 'Berlin Wall' in late 2020 - a full 'transformation' was supposed to follow in the next few years, but not much has been done to improve the area. Ethan Davies reports.

Manchester city centre has changed an enormous amount since 2002.

Skyscrapers dominate the city, where thousands now live. Shiny stadia house City and United, both of whom are treble winners. A second mega-arena opened, attracting more of the world’s best acts.

But 10 acres at the core of the city look very, very similar.

When a redesigned Piccadilly Gardens opened ahead of the Mancunian Commonwealth Games, featuring concrete brutalism from Tadao Ando, it was hailed as a new era for the plaza.

Although pretty on rare sunny days, the rose garden which opened in 1914 was blighted by anti-social behaviour and crime at the end of the 20th century, and a flatter square was eyed as part of the sweeping city centre redevelopment planned in the wake of the 1996 IRA bomb.

But Ando’s vision for the Gardens hasn't solved issues in the area.

‘People problems’ remain, as witnessed by the Manchester Evening News’ James Holt, who spent an afternoon there last Monday (May 19). In two hours, he saw public urination, drug use, begging, armies of pigeons, and an air ambulance landing to respond to a stabbing in the Northern Quarter.

“Oh it’s absolutely horrid now,” Anne Jackson, from Bolton, said that afternoon. “The area where the fountains are was all lawn but now it’s just lifeless, grey and dirty. The old gardens were beautiful, it was like a haven in the city.

“I don’t come up here now. Everyone is begging and there are so many people taking drugs. I don’t like it at all.”

It’s a review of the area one police officer said they ‘probably wouldn’t’ want relatives walking through.

Supt Blackwood’s comments came in October 2023 as part of a major crackdown on crime in the area which continues to this day.

At the time, a concurrent Manchester council plan to ‘transform’ the square into an ‘outstanding, welcoming public space’ was in the works, and a design team had been appointed to oversee the £27m regeneration project months earlier.

The ‘transformation’ was set to follow the demolition of a section of the concrete ‘Berlin Wall’ which separated the Parker Street bus station from the rest of the Gardens in November 2020.

LDA Design Studio secured the contract in July 2023 after winning a design competition the year before, tasked with creating ‘somewhere people want to linger, not just pass through’, council leader Bev Craig said.

The appearance of the Gardens has been helped by Legal & General’s (L&G) makeover of the concrete pavilion, removing the canopy between two retail units and adding lights to the back of the wall.

But since LDA’s appointment, no public update has been given on the council’s redevelopment project. No concept images have been released either, and no timescale has been given on when building work will begin.

The M.E.N. can reveal today the reason for the radio silence.

A ‘rethink of the budget is required as the initial budget is now not considered large enough to complete the transformation originally planned’, a source familiar with the project revealed.

They added ‘it could be three to four times larger’.

A council spokesperson has subsequently confirmed the authority is ‘striving to secure the necessary funding and wider investment to improve the area’.

Previously, Coun Pat Karney said it was ‘determined to get it right’, and the M.E.N. understands the council wants to complete one major project in the future, rather than a smaller revamp with the existing budget.

It means there is a plan to fix Piccadilly Gardens’ physical environment — but the city cannot afford it, currently.

A Manchester City Council spokesperson added another update will come later in 2025.

They said: “We know how important Piccadilly Gardens is to Manchester. There have been ongoing improvements to Piccadilly Gardens, which are gradually beginning to make a difference to this busy public space, but we are under no illusion that challenges remain and there is still more to do.

“We are listening to and acting upon public feedback — and Piccadilly Gardens is changing. In recent times we have demolished the free-standing part of the unpopular wall, which we owned. L&G, who own the pavilion structure, also removed further sections and took away the concrete roof linking the two sections of the pavilion.

“Extensive police intervention through Operation Vulcan, supported by our community safety teams, and ongoing days of action have brought crime levels down while a series of events such as Easter and Christmas Markets have attracted thousands to enjoy the space. It’s also been busy during the recent sunny weather.

“These improvements help us on our way but we want a revamped Piccadilly Gardens for people to spend time in and pass through which ultimately will make Manchester proud.

“We are striving behind the scenes to realise our ambitions for the future of Piccadilly Gardens — and deliver something truly transformational — but it is a complex process which we are working on with partners, including TfGM.

“We are also striving to secure the necessary funding and wider investment to improve the area.

"We aim to come forward with an update on this vital piece of work later on in the year to make sure Mancunians have the chance to shape the plans we bring forward”

Greater Manchester Police was contacted for comment.