A new snooker hall, designed to appeal to recent arrivals from Hong Kong, could open opposite the Apollo music venue in Ardwick.
New planning documents show developers TTS Trading Ltd are keen on converting the first floor of a storage building on Hyde Road into ‘snooker and pool hall with bar and dining area’. If approved, Club 200, as it will be called, will have space for 12 snooker tables, five pool tables, and seating 60 people in the bar area.
It’s envisaged that the kitchen will be serving east Asian cuisine. TTS says it is keen on breathing new life into the industrial site, which is 14,600 sq ft (1,360 sqm) large, ‘to cater for a growing British National Overseas population’.
“The applicant has identified a need for a new snooker club, bar and dining facility in Manchester City Centre, to cater for a growing BNO (British National Overseas) population - those who have migrated from Hong Kong carrying BNO visas to set up residence in UK,” a planning statement written by TADW architects, on behalf of TTS, said.
“The applicant is extremely keen to invest in creating a new recreational facility in this central location as it will offer benefits to the local and wider community. Together with a new bar and dining area, this will provide a new entertainment facility for those of similar backgrounds to meet, socialise and to enhance a sense of community.
“In addition to a new bar and eating destination serving eastern Asian cuisine, the new establishment aims to provide a culturally diverse service for local and overseas residents, and an educational facility to the increasingly growing BNO Chinese community, many of which have immigrated to Manchester for study and work.”
Bosses say that they want Club 200 to become an anchor in the community. The statement added: “Once established, the management of the company aims to organise other events such as local football, badminton, snooker, and golf matches through interaction with other societies and clubs.”
You can view the plans online here.
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