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Manchester City Council is set to approve plans by local practice Jon Matthews Architects to build an office block above a listed Victorian warehouse despite an objection from Historic England who has asked Michael Gove to make the final decision on the scheme.

The council鈥檚 planning committee is due to decide on the city centre King Street West scheme on Thursday.

But Historic England has asked the council to refer the application to the communities secretary to make a final decision on the scheme. 

In a letter of objection, the government鈥檚 heritage adviser said: 鈥淚f the Local Planning Authority is minded to grant consent in its current form, in light of this objection they should treat this letter as a request to notify the Secretary of State of this application.鈥�

Designed for developer Property Alliance Group, it would see the demolition of a grade II-listed neo-classical building, Reedham House, and the construction of a 14-storey block above an attached warehouse at 3 Smithy Lane, which is also grade II-listed.

Reedham House was built in 1849 as the showroom of a carriage manufacturer, though it was partially rebuilt in 1926 and again after the Second World War due to bomb damage.

Its adjoining warehouse was built in 1840. The complex, which is one of only five listed carriage works in the country, was described by Historic England as a 鈥渞are insight鈥� into the 19th century carriage manufacturing industry.

The body said the design of the proposed scheme, which is faced with a green aluminium cladding, would be 鈥渙ut of keeping鈥� with the character of the local Parsonage Gardens conservation area.

It added the tower鈥檚 scale would exacerbate the harm caused by 鈥渞einforcing the prevalence of ad hoc tall buildings, of indifferent design, which form a ring outside the south and west edge of the conservation area鈥�.

Property Alliance Group said the tower鈥檚 green colour has been chosen to complement the warehouse鈥檚 reddish brown brickwork. The scheme will also see the restoration of retained buildings, the replacement of modern additions such as white plastic windows and the reinstatement of a historic entrance into the courtyard at the centre of the complex.

Save Britain鈥檚 Heritage has also objected to the 鈥渦njustified鈥� loss of Reedham House, which it called a local landmark of high historic significance.

The group said the tower鈥檚 design was 鈥渁t odds鈥� with the conservation area鈥檚 鈥渓ong established special character鈥�, which is typified by low-rise 19th century commercial buildings.

The council鈥檚 planning officer admitted the complex, which also features 20th century buildings, provides 鈥渃onsiderable evidence of the character and evolution of smaller scale industry in nineteenth and twentieth century Manchester.鈥�

But the officer鈥檚 report said the scheme, despite causing a 鈥渉igh level鈥� of less than substantial harm, would be outweighed by the public benefits including the creation of skilled construction jobs.

While the officer admitted the building would be tall in its current context, the report said this impact would be lessened if proposals for other recently approved tall schemes nearby are built out.

These include Sheppard Robson鈥檚 designs for a , and a

Other controversial developments above listed buildings which are currently in planning include Herzog & de Meuron鈥檚 proposals to build a 21-storey office block cantilevered over the grade II-listed Andaz Hotel, next to Liverpool Street station in the City of London.