Responding to the growing demand for high-quality homes in the town centre, Portergate Developments has worked with Buttress architects to design the 120-apartment building. The scheme, along with its neighbouring amenities will serve as a prominent landmark on the edge of the new University Square.



The 19-storey building, which will also have an adjoining five-storey plinth, will offer a mixture of one-bed and two-bedroom apartments, a private roof garden and 120 secure cycle storage spaces. The plans also include a residents’ lounge which will provide a new active space and will front onto the Moor Lane and Walker Street junction which faces the new University Square.
The scheme will create an important contribution to the regeneration of the centre of Preston with a multi-million-pound investment that will link to surrounding university buildings and business areas.
Central to the design approach has been to create a building that responds to its surrounding area, which includes a mixture of heritage and contemporary buildings. The design is to produce a significant landmark building for Preston which will reflect the area’s university and civic status. The design uses a colour palette which has been selected to complement the neighbouring student buildings, with the grey brick picking up the tones from the streetscape. Residents will benefit from generous recessed balconies which will allow them to take advantage of the long-reaching views and Preston.
Portergate Developments bring significant experience of working in Preston, previously promoting Friargate Court, a purpose-built accommodation for over 200 students which is close to the Moor Lane site.
Image credit: Virtual Planit
Andy Avery from Buttress added: “The proposals will form a significant part of the University Square development providing a landmark building as well as creating quality new homes for the people of Preston. We are also pleased with the level of public realm improvements surrounding the scheme.”
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Andy Avery
Andy leads Buttress' residential and regeneration team and has the rare ability to cut through to the heart of complex issues to find a solution.
Alison Haigh
Alison is an associate at Buttress with over 20 years of experience in the profession, specialising in the design and delivery of major residential projects.