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Homes will be 'completely dwarfed' by warehouses

Phil Cunliffe,in Ecclesand
Angela Ferguson,North West
BBC/Phil Cunliffe A man with short strawberry blonde hair and beard and wearing a blue pinstripe shirt is smiling while standing next to green metal railings. A yellow digger and churned up soil can be seen behind the railings.BBC/Phil Cunliffe
Andy Spratt said residents were concerned about the scale of the development and also about what might lie beneath the ground of the former chemical plant site

A residents' group has expressed concern that their homes will be "completely dwarfed" by a large warehouse development being built on their doorsteps.

The largest warehouse planned for the site in Eccles, Salford, is set to be 60ft (18m) high, according to nearby resident Andy Spratt.

He also raised concerns about what could be in the ground at the former site of a chemical plant.

A spokesperson for developer Aviva Investors said: "There is no evidence of any contamination from the previous use of the site, nor has any evidence of the presence of chemicals appeared throughout the conveyancing and survey process prior to work starting, nor since work has commenced."

Plans for the brownfield site on Lankro Way, close to the Manchester Ship Canal, were granted planning permission by Salford Council in 2022. Consent was later given for Aviva Investors to build seven large storage units.

Spratt and fellow resident Holly Muldoon have set up the Stop the Eccles Warehouse campaign group.

Spratt told BBC North West Tonight that the end of his street and Boardman Street was "just going to be completely dwarfed by the warehouse" and could lose a lot of morning light as a result.

He said it was going to be a 24/7 logistics operation "which means articulated lorries all day, all night, forklift trucks".

The Mayor of Greater Manchester Bev Craig has previously said planning rules should be reviewed after complaints about warehouses being built close to people's homes.

Campaigners in Astley, Wigan, have also raised concerns about the scale and proximity of a warehouse development there, as well as noise from future operations.

Spratt said he was concerned about the impact of the Eccles development on house prices.

"We bought our house in 2024. If we'd have known this was going ahead we wouldn't have bought it," he said.

BBC/Phil Cunliffe A woman with tied back blonde hair and wearing a navy blue jacket and white top is looking at the camera while standing next to green metal railings. Some blurred out plants, rubble and a digger can be seen behind the railings.BBC/Phil Cunliffe
Holly Muldoon said she believed consultation letters had only been sent to about 70 properties when there were about 300 homes in the area

Muldoon said she believed consultation letters had been sent to about 70 properties, despite the campaign group estimating the development would affect about 300 homes.

She said the plans had not appeared in surveys when she bought her property in 2024.

"We wouldn't have bought it if we knew that this was going to be at the bottom of the road," she said.

BBC/Phil Cunliffe A large patch of land has a line of debris and rubble at one end, with a buddleia bush still partially in bloom in the foreground and the cityscape in the distance.BBC/Phil Cunliffe
Some residents have questioned why such a development can be built so close to their homes

Russ Moore, whose bedroom overlooks the site, said: "It's just horrendous all day."

He said dust had been getting onto his windows, window sills and cars outside.

A spokesperson for Aviva said the development included a large landscaped boundary and that the application had been publicly available and subject to a formal consultation period.

BBC/Phil Cunliffe A man with short grey hair and a grey beard and black and yellow top is looking at the camera. He is in front of his bedroom window, with a blurred out view of a demolition site.BBC/Phil Cunliffe
Russ Moore, whose house backs onto the site, said he was woken up by the demolition work

They said they were "striving to keep any disruption to a minimum by working directly with contractors at the site to ensure the local community is kept informed on progress and that they have a point of contact should they have any concerns they wish to raise directly".

"We are grateful for the patience of the local community and look forward to delivering the scheme in due course," they added.

A Salford Council spokesperson said residents' concerns about the site's previous industrial use were considered and both the council and Environment Agency reviewed the contamination assessments and required conditions for further investigation, remediation and verification.

"Subject to those works being completed and verified, the assessments concluded there would be no unacceptable impact in terms of contamination or human health," they added.

They said residents were consulted "in line with statutory requirements, with over 6,063 neighbouring properties notified by letter, alongside site notices and a press notice" and a wider consultation involving about 1,250 properties carried out by the developer.

A further consultation regarding a number of amendments - including the reconfiguration of several units and a reduction in overall floorspace of around 20,000sq ft - was carried out in September 2025 and approved in April this year.

"The council will continue to ensure the planning conditions, including those relating to contamination and remediation, are complied with as the development progresses," the spokesperson said.

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