The bright blue tower with a really weird name that could be built in Manchester

A bright blue 16-storey office block with a Latin name could be built on the site of a former college in Manchester city centre. Should the plans be approved and construction is completed, the building will be called ‘Colloco’ — which developer HBD says is the Latin for ‘gathering’. Colloco will also boast a roof terrace and balconies.

It’s set to be constructed on the former site of The Manchester College, which opened in 2000 next to an NCP Car Park, on New Quay Street. The site is also a stone’s throw from the new St John’s neighbourhood, which includes Aviva Studios.

HBD is one of the firms behind the Kampus development in the Village and Island office block currently under construction on John Dalton Street. In previous life, the company also built Pinewood Studios in London.

READ MORE: Inside Manchester's re-opened historic landmark that has been restored to its former glory

READ MORE: Get the latest city centre news here.

It says Colloco will ‘combine high end commercial workspace with wellness focused amenity facilities’ and ‘create a new benchmark for office developments within Manchester city centre’.

Colloco is certainly set to be striking, with blue glazed bricks making up the exterior of the block. That’s part of an effort to modernise redbrick warehouse architecture seen in the city already.

“The design will celebrate the proportions and order of Victorian warehouse architecture and the honesty and grit of industrial exposed structure, whilst introducing contemporary materials and colours, to create the new warehouse aesthetic,” a statement from HBD said. Other ‘key architectural features’ are the terrace and rooftop pavilion, set to provide views of the city 16 storeys up.

“It offers a stepped back