New food hall, tap room and offices are coming to a city in Greater Manchester

A trio of cotton mills in the heart of Wigan, which once housed more than 253,000 cotton spindles at their peak, are to be fully restored into a new quarter comprising a food hall, bathroom, office space and apartments.

Once nicknamed the ‘spindle town’ for its abundance of spinning wheels, where in the late 1800s almost half of Wigan’s population was employed in one of the town’s textile mills, Eckersley Mill on Swan Meadow Road played an important role in the industrial heritage of the city. Wigan.

Apart from a brief stint as a go-karting and paintball centre, the three mills, which date from the late 1800s and now have Grade II listed status, have largely lain dormant since the 1970s. But they are now ready to be brought back to life – and it is hoped that by this time next year they will once again serve as a cultural beacon for the city.

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As part of a huge £200m project from Wigan-based family developers Heaton Group, work is now underway to transform the mills – which form part of a 17-acre site – into a place where residents and visitors I can live, socialize, work. and enjoy good food.

The plan is to convert one of the mills into 137 apartments with a mix of one to three bed houses. Nearby, there will also be – below, some new construction in the form of penthouse-style homes with private terraces, as well as a retirement home.

But for Mill One, as it’s currently called, the four-story building will have a huge food hall, a bar and brewery, office space and a rooftop cocktail bar. Those behind the ambitious project say it’s exactly what the city needs — and something residents have been longing for.

“Mill One will be the main anchor point for the whole development,” Simon Anderson, who is working on the hospitality aspect of the project with Heaton Group, told MEN “There is 20,000 square meters of space on each floor. The ground floor will be a food hall and bar, then there will be three floors of office space.

“The roof will be used as a co-working area as well as a rooftop cocktail bar and event space. It will have stunning views of the city as well as views of the hills and countryside around us.”

While it’s too early to say which traders will join the bar and food hall space, which could host up to 400 diners at a time, Simon says developers have learned a lot from the recent Feast at The Mills weekend street food event. . Launched last year, the pop-up area features four food traders and two bars, as well as a stage for live music and takeaway events.

“Each weekend outdoes the last in terms of popularity,” Simon says of the pop-up. “It’s a really good atmosphere, so we want to follow the same pattern as Feast. We want as many local traders as possible, as well as those from Greater Manchester and nearby, and we want a real variety of things going on.

“On the bar, we will be working with some local breweries and focusing on the good quality of beer that we are very lucky to have here in the North. As we move into weekends and evenings, we want to continue to focus on live music and performances. That’s something that’s worked really well for us, and Wigan has such a vibrancy and rich heritage when it comes to music – it’s an important part of the town.”

Developers say they’re confident the project, currently dubbed Cotton Works, is exactly what the city needs — and the demand is already there, with most of the office space already pre-leased. The food hall and tap room will be operated by hospitality company Heaton and will be designed by the same team that created the look of the Arcade food hall at Battersea Power Station.

“From Battersea Power Station to Wigan,” laughs Simon. “The team behind the project has this huge wealth of experience working with these amazing, old brick buildings. It’s a real labor of love for everyone involved.”

Due to the listed status of the mills, Simon admits that going through a project of this magnitude was complex. Plans for a third mill on the site are still up in the air due to its dilapidated condition, but he insists they want to preserve the character of each building while giving it a modern purpose.

“We want to preserve the heritage of the buildings,” he insists. “We have real brick arch construction and solid granite foundations here, we really want the industrial history and fabric of the building to be used alongside some new and modern notions. It is important to have the history but also to reflect the new use.

“In other projects, you often find you’re trying to recreate the feel of old buildings, but here we’re trying to keep as much of the fabric of the building as possible.”

In this regard, Simon says the aim is to create something that reminds visitors that they are in a historic building with a lot of significance to it, while also being cosy, comfortable and relaxed. Speaking to residents in the early stages of development, he says the project has gone well so far.

“There’s a lot of pride here and the vast majority of people here are excited to see the work in motion,” he explains. “People here see these big developments happening in other parts of Manchester or in Liverpool and we’ve seen how places like food halls can play a huge role in upscale areas, so they often wonder why Wigan doesn’t always have the same . love and attention.

“It’s a brave investment to make, it takes a lot of time and money, but we want to create something that people can really take to heart and something that will become a really meaningful destination not just for Wigan but in the North west.”

Meanwhile, Feast at The Mills will remain open year-round on weekends until the mills themselves are ready. The development is scheduled to be completed by March 2025.