How important is leadership to a city? Frank McKenna shares his thoughts in this week’s TFI. Also featured today, Ear to the Ground are ‘Business of the Week; and Tony O’Brien from Sheppard Robson is our ‘Man of the Week’. Simon Allen reveals more than he should in ‘Who Are Yer?’ and you have a chance to register for Downtown’s next ‘Sexy Networking' event which will be hosted at the Radisson later this month. Read on, enjoy, have a great weekend and don’t do anything Frank wouldn’t do...

PEEL Energy has announced plans to build a £70m, 20MW renewable energy plant next to Barton Bridge in Trafford.

The biomass plant will be fuelled using recycled wood, agricultural and forestry waste and energy crops.

If approval is granted by Trafford Council, it would be built on land on the south side of the Manchester Ship Canal, immediately west of Barton High Level Bridge in Trafford.

Peel Energy said that more than 100 jobs could be created during the plant's two-year construction phase. Once complete, it will provide 15 full-time jobs.

Is leadership important to a city? Apparently very much so, if recent consultations carried out by both Preston Vision and Downtown Preston in Business are anything to go by...

Lambert Smith Hampton (LSH) have been instructed by the Northwest Regional Development Agency to take the Jactin House development site in Ancoats to the market for sale.

Fronting the Cutting Room Square public space next to St Peter’s Church, the 40,000 sq ft Jactin House also faces the Ice Plant development being undertaken by Northern Group, now back onsite and expecting to reach completion with its residential and leisure scheme in March 2011.

LSH director Andrew Aherne said: “This is a fantastic development opportunity, which is suitable for a variety of commercial uses. This site is the first to be released for redevelopment in some time, With the unique feel of the urban village and very little competition in the surrounding area, we expect it to draw interest from a wide range of potential developers.”

Martin Kirby, the managing director of RSM Tenon in the North West, has accepted the inaugural title of Visiting Entrepreneur to Manchester Metropolitan University’s (MMU) Centre for Enterprise.

The role of Visiting Entrepreneur is advisory and it is intended that Martin’s input will enhance the blend of experience and expertise at the Centre for Enterprise, alongside distinguished business professors and scholars.

MMU’s Centre for Enterprise was established in 2001 as a part of the university’s Business School, and has attracted over £10m of revenue to support the development of entrepreneurs and their businesses. Since inception, over 1,000 entrepreneurs from the centre have set up businesses in the North West region, with the help of leading professors, business experts and access to funding.

Manchester property group Bruntwood has signed a three-year extension to a maintenance contract with Managed Support Services.
The agreement, worth £500,000 a year, will cover 95% of Bruntwood's managed portfolio, or 5.5m sq ft of commercial property.
Bruntwood, led by Chris Oglesby, owns more than 90 buildings in Manchester, Leeds, Birmingham and Liverpool.

Consumer cynicism has forced organisations to look for more credible and engaging ways to interact with their audience. Ear To The Ground create events and live communications to bring consumers together and give positive memorable experiences.

Ear To The Ground inject excitement into every live campaign and the intensity of these moments stay with people forever. Their ‘must see moments’ generate their own content and are guaranteed to maximise coverage across all channels. In return for delivering exciting live experiences their clients are rewarded with media, consumer advocacy and increased sales.

www.eartotheground.org

The North West office of Sheppard Robson has this week announced the promotion of one of its most well respected and talented architects; Tony O’Brien, previously associate partner and design director, has been promoted to Partner.

O’Brien is an enormously talented architect, with an impressive track record of successful, hugely significant schemes. He recently led the design for Arup’s UK HQ in London, and Media City in Salford, and is currently leading Sheppard Robson’s scheme on the design competition for the Liverpool Magistrates Courts.

Before joining Sheppard Robson in 1999, O’Brien had been involved with several high profile schemes including Canary Wharf and the Samsung European HQ whilst working at Terry Farrell and Partners. He is a key member of the team that leads Sheppard Robson’s North West office, where he is responsible for the office, mixed use and retail sectors.

We simply can’t even begin to try and explain it. Think of a number, follow the instructions on the screen and prepare to be amazed/confused.

The five shortlisted designs for the improvement of St Peter's Square in central Manchester were unveiled at a private viewing this week. The exhibition, which opened to the public yesterday morning, will last until Saturday and can be found in the former visitor information centre behind the Town hall.

The displays have been labeled 002, 004, 016, 027 and 032 to keep the identities of the five architects secret, even to the judges, to prevent preconceptions influencing the decision.

The winning design team will be selected later this summer.

The £20m contract is scheduled to start on site in early 2011 and last 12 months. The contest is part of the civic complex renewal programme that includes refurbishment of the Town Hall Extension and Central Library.

Join Downtown Manchester in Business for our next Sexy Networking event on Thursday 29th July.

Date: Thursday 29th July
Time: 6.30pm - 9.00pm
Venue: Radisson Edwardian

Sellick Partnerhsip would like to invite you to the End of Season Awards Dinner 2010. Hosted in the glamourous setting of the Lowry Hotel, the evening will commence with a champagne reception followed by a delicious three-course meal.

Ex-England cricket captain, Alec Stewart will entertain the crowd with his experience and anecdotes of being one of the most successful cricketers of our time.

Name: Simon Allen

Company: Total Business Finance

Position: Owner

Red or Blue: Blue CTID

Labour Liberal or Tory: Is there a difference? Their policies overlap so much nowadays. Would support whoever gives more power to the North West.

Favourite Bar/Restaurant: El Rincon

What’s Your Tipple: A pint of bitter please

Favourite Band: James

Top Tune: Destiny Calling by James

Favourite Book: Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco

Favourite Movie: Kill Bill

Who Would Play You In A Film: Anthony Edwards (Dr Greene from ER)

Favourite TV Programme: Blackadder

Most Visited Website: www.spotify.com

Celebrity Crush: Uma Thurman

Interesting Fact About You: Sacked from being an altar boy at 12 as I was caught drinking the wine and eating the hosts. Father forgive me