Munich-based family office AM alpha plans to convert the historic Rylands building Manchester into a mixed-use development with retail, leisure and office space.
The 46,451 m2 Grade II listed building, on the corner of Market Street and High Street, formerly housed the Debenhams department store.
Extensive refurbishment work will start in 2023, with completion scheduled for early 2025.
The project foresees the conversion of the upper floors into high-quality office space and creating a shopping arcade on the ground floor, while a four-storey extension will be added so that Rylands will have ten floors.
The building aims to achieve Net Zero Carbon status and Breeam Excellent or Nabers 5 certification for sustainable construction.
Stephan Schmid, senior VP at AM alpha, said: ‘Working with listed buildings is always a great privilege. We are proud to be able to give this historic Manchester landmark a new future and restore Rylands to its former glory in a very sustainable way. In this way, we are also helping to achieve Greater Manchester's 2038 carbon neutrality target.’
AM alpha purchased the building for £87 mln (€99 mln) in 2017.
The property is close to bustling areas in Manchester such as Piccadilly Gardens and the Northern Quarter.
Local listed and sustainable construction specialist Russell WBHO has been selected as construction partner, while local property companies OBI and Barker Proudlove have been appointed as letting agents.
