Decades of huge change for cityand more ahead

WHEN Eamonn Boylan got his first job as a housing officer in Miles Platting, Ancoats was derelict. Four decades later, it is one of the most desirable places to live in Manchester - and it has even been crowned one of the ‘coolest’ neighbourhoods in the world.

- JOSEPH TIMAN

“Some might say it’s gone too far in terms of gentrification,” the top public official says, “but I don’t believe that’s the case.”

Speaking to the Manchester Evening News as he prepares to retire, the chief executive of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) lists his proudest achievements from a 42-year career which has taken him all over the country to work on huge regeneration projects. The transformation of Hulme in the nineties, which he helped lead, stands out as ‘one of the best’, he says.

“The lesson I learnt from that scheme was that we’re not in the world of local government and public sector regeneration to create things of beauty,” he says. “We’re in the world to create things that make logical sense for people.”

While not considered one of the ‘coolest’ neighbourhoods in the world, Mr Boylan says that the work which got under way in 1992 transformed Hulme from an area families would not choose to live in, to one which is a ‘logical choice’ for those looking to relocate.

Mr Boylan, who worked at Manchester and Stockport councils before joining the GMCA, took the top job at a time when the city centre’s skyline was changing dramatically. But as more swanky skyscrapers continue to pop up, many residents are being priced out.

Council bosses have come under pressure to demand developers build more affordable housing - or contribute towards the costs. Mr Boylan says that as Greater Manchester has grown, local leaders have gained more leverage at the negotiating table with developers.