Number One Riverside

Number One Riverside is a multi-use public building in Rochdale, Greater Manchester, England. It houses Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council's civic offices and customer service centre, Rochdale Central Library, conference facilities for community use, and office space for third parties.^[3] The publicly accessible ground floor includes restaurant and café spaces overlooking the River Roch. The building was designed by FaulknerBrowns Architects^[4] and opened to the public in March 2013.

Number One Riverside
Number One Riverside
Location within Greater Manchester
General information
Type	Local government offices, library
Location	Smith Street, Rochdale, OL16 1XU, Rochdale, England
Coordinates	53.617°N 2.1537°W / 53.617; -2.1537
Construction started	March 2011
Completed	December 2012
Opened	March 2013
Cost	£42.5 million[1]
Technical details
Material	Portland stone
Floor count	5[2]
Floor area	17,000 m2 (180,000 sq ft)[1]
Design and construction
Architecture firm	FaulknerBrowns Architects
Structural engineer	Curtins Consulting
Main contractor	Sir Robert McAlpine
Other information
Public transit access	Rochdale Interchange Rochdale Town Centre tram stop
Website
Number One Riverside

The contemporary structure was designed to be energy efficient and incorporates renewable and low-carbon technologies, including a biomass boiler, photovoltaic panels to generate electricity, and solar panels to assist with water heating. Its green roof was designed to harvest rainwater and provide insulation.

The development of Number One Riverside enabled the council to consolidate its estate from 33 separate sites into a single building.^[5]

History

Number One Riverside replaced the municipal offices, locally known as "The Black Box," which were demolished in 2014 along with the bus station and multi-storey car park to make way for the Rochdale Riverside retail and leisure development.^[6][7]

Following severe flooding on Boxing Day 2015,^[8] much of Number One Riverside was closed, and the library did not reopen until 2017.^[9]

From February to June 2020, Number One Riverside hosted Dippy the dinosaur, the Natural History Museum's cast of a Diplodocus skeleton, as part of a nationwide tour.^[10]

Transport links

Rochdale Town Centre tram stop, outside Number One Riverside

Rochdale Town Centre tram stop, on the Oldham and Rochdale Line of the Metrolink system, is located directly outside Number One Riverside. Rochdale Interchange is also adjacent to the building, on the opposite side of the River Roch.