Comedian Steve Coogan says a deal to acquire an historic cotton mill could “lead on to great things” as he helped lead regeneration plans in his hometown of Middleton, in Greater Manchester.
Rochdale Borough Council said it had struck a deal to acquire Grade II-listed Warwick Mill, vacant for at least a decade, after a consultation of more than 2,000 people.
The Bafta-winning actor co-chairs the shadow board setting up Middleton’s proposed mayoral development corporation (MDC), which would have powers to buy land and drive development.
At Middleton Arena, Coogan said residents should be involved “from the ground up”, with regeneration done “with people, not to them”.
Coogan said Middleton wanted to build on the regeneration model used in Stockport, but “do things a bit differently here”.
He said consultation should involve people “from the ground up so that people feel involved”.
“We’re doing things with people, not to them,” he said.