The scheme provides 135 apartments ranging from studios to three bed units with private on-site amenity space at the seventh-floor roof top level.
The analysis of the site including that of the buildings which formally occupied the site informed the design concept of basing the building form on six blocks which are then extruded to different heights to generate the overall building form. These blocks allow the building to respond to both the clearly defined street pattern and also the datum levels which were identified.
In developing the concept for the elevations, consideration was given to the strong aesthetic of the existing building stock including the mills which define this part of the city centre. The key features of these existing buildings are both the rhythm of the fenestration and its honest reflection of the rooms within and also the vertical proportions of the overall buildings.
The design for the elevations reflects this honesty and rhythm with the depth of the window reveals and quality of detailing key to defining the overall character of the building. Recessed strips of windows and other subtle features within the overall composition serve to define the six blocks which formed the original concept for the site. These strips also serve to emphasise the proportions of the building and the hierarchy of the elements.
The different elevations each utilise subtly different treatments built up from the same palette of materials to define the different faces and orientation of the building. This can be noted with the differences between the North East facing Great Ancoats Street elevation and the South West facing Houldsworth Street. The former utilises a more consistent pattern of windows with subtle Juliet balconies facing the harder and noisier main road whereas the rear city facing elevation incorporates recessed balconies and increased fenestration to reflect its aspect.