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Central Manchester Development Corporation

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Central Manchester Development Corporation
Founded1988
Defunct1 July 1996 Edit this on Wikidata
HeadquartersManchester, England
Key people
Dr James Grigor OBE, Chairman
John Glestor, CEO
The six areas within the boundary of the CMDC: Pomona, Castlefield, Central, Gaythorn & Piccadilly

The Central Manchester Development Corporation was established in 1988 to develop parts of eastern Manchester.

History

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The corporation was established as part of an initiative by the future Deputy Prime Minister, Michael Heseltine, in 1988 during the Third Thatcher ministry.[1] Board members were directly appointed by the minister and overrode local authority planning controls to spend government money on infrastructure. This was a controversial measure in Labour strongholds such as East London, Merseyside and North East England.[2][3]

Its flagship developments included the Bridgewater Hall concert auditorium.[4] During its lifetime, 1.5 m sq.ft. of non-housing development and 2,583 housing units were built. Around 4,944 new jobs were created and some £303m of private finance was leveraged. Nearly 86 acres (350,000 m2) of derelict land was reclaimed with 1.3 miles (2.1 km) of new roads and footpaths established.[5]

The Chairman was Dr James Grigor and the Chief Executive was John Glester.[6] It was dissolved in 1996.[7]

References

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  1. ^ "The Central Manchester Development Corporation (Area and Constitution) Order 1986". Legislation.uk. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  2. ^ Parkinson, Michael; Duffy, James (1984). Government's Response to Inner-City Riots: The Minister for Merseyside and the Task Force. Vol. 37. Parliamentary Affairs. pp. 76–96.
  3. ^ Crick, Michael (1997). Michael Heseltine: A Biography. Hamish Hamilton. p. 238. ISBN 978-0241136911.
  4. ^ "The Bridgewater Hall – History and Architecture". Bridgewater Hall. Archived from the original on 25 September 2011. Retrieved 11 October 2011.
  5. ^ "Impact of Urban Development Corporations in Leeds, Bristol & Central Manchester". Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions. 18 November 1998. Archived from the original on 11 December 2008. Retrieved 26 March 2009.
  6. ^ Fry, Kath; Cropper, Karen (2016). "Relationships with the Private Sector". Manchester 1984. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
  7. ^ "The Central Manchester Development Corporation (Dissolution) Order 1996". www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 28 August 2018.