Regeneration & Development inLiverpool City Centre

1995-2004

2

Foreword

The designation of Liverpool as the UK’s nomination for

European Capital of Culture 2008 in June 2003 has given

the city a well earned boost to its confidence following

the economic hardships which it faced through the

1980’s and 1990’s. Today, the city is internationally

recognised as undergoing a major renaissance.

Culturally, the city has always been strong, with its

connections to popular music and the arts.

Architecturally, the city has long been admired for its

grand buildings of earlier centuries - but by the

beginning of the 1990’s Liverpool was seen as a place

where major new developments were part of its history

and the city was stagnating.

The seeds of Liverpool’s renaissance were actually

planted as long ago as the early 1980’s, when the

Merseyside Development Corporation proved what could

be possible by its transformation of the Albert Dock into

one of the city’s major tourist attractions. Liverpool’s

hosting of the UK’s first ever international Garden

Festival in 1984 further demonstrated what could be

done with imagination and commitment.

What was less well known in the 1980’s and early 1990’s,

however, was that an area of the South Docklands had

been slowly cleared away and a small development of

striking apartments erected next to what would become

Liverpool Marina. This, in addition to the conversion of

some of the Albert Dock and Wapping warehouses into

residential accommodation, would be the birth of

waterside living - making Liverpool City Centre a place

where people could move back in to live, if the choice

and quality of the accommodation was sufficient to

become desirable.

By 1995, as more apartments slowly began to appear

around the marina and city centre living became

fashionable amongst young professionals, niche

developers such as Urban Splash and the Beetham

Organization looked to the heart of the city centre itself -

away from the waterside - for opportunities to convert

some of Liverpool’s redundant office buildings for

residential use.

Urban Splash’s involvement in Concert Square saw the

development of striking new architecture featuring bars

and apartments arriving in the emerging RopeWalks

district adjacent to Bold Street, an area of mostly derelict

warehouses. So successful was this and subsequent

developments that Urban Splash now enjoy an

outstanding reputation for innovation and quality in the

field of conversion of former derelict areas into vibrant

and popular quarters of the city’s regenerating urban

fabric.

Similarly, when the Beetham Organization acquired the

former Hornby House, a vacant office building on

Tithebarn Street, with a view to converting it into

apartments with ground floor commercial space, some

were sceptical that anybody would wish to buy a place to

live in this location. The sceptics were proved wrong,

and the Beetham Organization proceeded to move onto

The birth of waterside and city living in Liverpool: Mariners

Wharf, South Marina (mid 1980’s)

Concert Square, RopeWalks: Urban Splash (1995)

3

New Century Apartments - formerly Hornby House, Tithebarn

Street (completed 1996)

Phase 3 Office Development, Princes Dock - MDHC

(completed 2001)

Nelson Street, Chinese Quarter, RopeWalks

more exciting ventures such as converting the former

Council Planning Department’s building - Wilberforce

House - into a striking luxury apartment block called

Beetham Plaza (completed June 2000), and its most

recent major development, the 30 storey Beetham Tower

at Old Hall Street.

City Centre Living in Liverpool is now recognised as one

of the many major successes for the city. Between 1971

and 1991 the population of the city centre had fallen from

3,600 to 2,340. An estimated 12,000 people now live in

the same area, with this figure expected to exceed

20,000 by 2007.

Although other cities may still be ahead of Liverpool in

terms of commercial development, Liverpool is quietly

catching up with its competitors. In 1996 the Mersey

Docks and Harbour Company started to clear

redundant buildings from the Princes Dock,

immediately adjacent to - and now forming part of -

the Commercial District. The first phase of office

buildings, providing 70,000 square feet of floorspace,

arrived in 1998. This was closely followed by the

completion of the Crowne Plaza Hotel which itself

became the first of a number of new hotels developed

as part of Liverpool’s growing tourist and conference

facilitating industries. Two further phases of offices

on Princes Dock have now been completed, whilst

another hotel and residential developments on this

key site are at planning stage. In March 2004, Plot 1

was given permission for 162 apartments in 20 and 11

storey towers with ground floor retail uses. City Lofts

will be the developer.

Commercial activity at Princes Dock was followed by

renewed interest in the commercial heart of the city

centre with a number of listed buildings that typify

Liverpool in its commercial heyday undergoing

refurbishment and increasing in investment values.

Examples include India Buildings, Cunard Building and

Port of Liverpool Building.

In the northern part of the Commercial District, Old Hall

Street area, high quality new floorspace started to be

planned in the late 1990s. 140,000 sq ft will be

completed and occupied in 2004 on Old Hall Street

adjacent to the Beetham Tower, and a further 144,000 sq

ft started on site in late 2003 at City Square, Moorfields.

Arts and Creative Industries were the focus of the

RopeWalks Initiative in the late 1990’s, which saw the

start of the regeneration in this once dilapidated sector

of the city centre. Investment in existing and new

buildings, coupled with an extensive programme of

environmental improvements are now coming to fruit,

with plans for additional development currently being

prepared.

Within RopeWalks and elsewhere, the quality and

breadth of the city centre’s leisure offer improved

enormously. The completion of the Crowne Plaza Holiday

Inn in Princes Dock has been referred to. Other new

hotels to open include Holiday Inn Express and Premier

Lodge at Albert Dock, Marriott in Queen Square, a Travel

Inn and a Travel Lodge. At the end of 2003/early 2004,

two further hotels opened: Radisson SAS in the

commercial district and the Hope Street Hotel opposite

the Philharmonic Hall. Both the latter have added

significantly to the quality of products on offer in

the city centre.

In tandem with the growth in the residential market and

the maturity of the city centre as a leisure destination,

the variety and number of restaurants and bars has

expanded with Heathcotes, Living Room and others now

located in the city centre.

Looking to the future and Liverpool’s 800th birthday in

2007, further development and expansion of the city

centre economy is well underway. Grosvenor’s proposals

for the Paradise Street Development Area will see a

significant expansion of the Retail Area, boosting

Liverpool’s position in the national league of shopping

destinations. In addition to 1 million square feet of retail

and leisure floorspace, this £750 million scheme will also

provide further residential units, offices, hotels, a new

bus station and public park.

Development of the Kings Dock Waterfront will see a

mixed use scheme including purpose built conference

and arena facilities, hotels, offices and apartments. The

conference facility will have a seating capacity of 8-9000.

Together with the new Cruise Liner facility at Princes

Dock and the proposed Canal Link, these two schemes

will establish the Pier Head at the heart of Liverpool’s

new identity.

The most recent and perhaps most exciting growth area

to emerge in the city centre at the start of the new

century has been that related to the knowledge

industries. The North West Development Agency’s

Economic Strategy identifies the importance of the

eastern part of the city centre, incorporating the

campuses of the two principal universities, to this area of

the economy. The strategy will build on the strengths of

the universities in the Bio Sciences and Digital Industry.

A Liverpool Science Park Company has been established,

which includes the City Council, North West Development

Agency and the two universities, whilst incubator and

grow-on space is currently under construction around the

Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King.

This document provides an overview of significant

projects in Liverpool’s city centre between 1995 and

2004, charting the rise in the number of schemes as

confidence by the development sector has grown to the

levels which it currently enjoys as efforts to regenerate

the city continue.

4

Grosvenor’s model for the Paradise Street Development Area

Latest proposals for the Kings Dock Waterfront

Zones

Page

Waterfront 6

Commercial 9

Live Work District 12

Lime Street Gateway 16

Retail Area 18

RopeWalks 22

L1 Baltic 25

Marybone 26

University Edge 28

Hope 31

Canning 35

Waterfront (1)

Liverpool’s Waterfront is one of the city’s most important assets, with the Three Graces at the Pier Head being one of the most internationally

renowned group of buildings. Nominated for World Heritage Site status, the area also includes the Albert Dock housing the Tate Gallery and

Maritime Museum. The Albert Dock, which is the largest group of Grade 1 listed buildings in England and designed by Jesse Hartley, was

officially opened by Prince Albert in 1846.

River Mersey, Pier Head, Liver Building

After New York, Liverpool has one of the best recognised

waterfront skylines in the world. The Pier Head, docks

and part of the Commercial District hinterland behind

have collectively been nominated for World Heritage Site

status. Plans are currently progressing to open a new

cruise liner facility at the Pier Head, bringing international

tourists right into the heart of the city, whilst the Mersey

Ferries accommodation will also be improved.

Pier Head

Sitting on Liverpool’s Pier Head are its Three Graces (the

Royal Liver Building, Cunard Building and Port of

Liverpool Building). In 1998 the Pier Head Gardens were

improved, providing the city with a symbol of civic pride

with which to greet international visitors. A Canal Link to

connect the Albert Dock with the Leeds-Liverpool Canal

and which will pass in front of the Three Graces has

recently been submitted as a formal planning

application.

Albert Dock

The Albert Dock continues to be regenerated, some 20

years after its renaissance began. Home to Tate

Liverpool, the largest gallery of modern and

contemporary art outside London, the Albert Dock

attracts 5 million visitors per annum. Over the last five

years two new hotels and many bars and restaurants

have been opened to add to its existing shops and

museum experiences. Upper floors of some buildings

have been converted to offices and residential

apartments. In 2003, three bedroomed apartments in

the Colonnades were selling at £260,000, and

penthouses at £335,000.

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Waterfront (2)

Liverpool City Council and its partner Liverpool Vision support the development of an arena and major leisure and residential provision on the

King’s Dock, which will add to the Waterfront Area’s position as a major cultural and leisure attraction for Merseyside and the North West

Region. Since 1998, Princes Dock has developed into an important addition to the city’s Commercial Office sector.

Kings Waterfront, Kings Dock

For many years, the Kings Dock has sat vacant, in use as

either car parking for the adjacent Albert Dock, or during

the summer as a temporary concert venue. Liverpool has

long wanted to see the site developed with mixed uses

including conference and arena facilities - and

negotiations are currently underway to secure such a

development. In the meantime, 200 high quality

apartments arrived in early 2003 in the form of a joint

development between Fiortho and Morrison Homes. By

December 2003, penthouses within the complex were

selling for £240,000.

8 Princes Parade, Princes Dock

In the late 1990’s, the former Princes Dock was cleared of

its redundant buildings by owner Mersey Docks &

Harbour Company in preparation for a prestige new

development of offices, hotels and apartments. 8 Princes

Parade was the first office building at Princes Dock to be

opened in 1998, offering high quality, high specification

accommodation in an outstanding waterfront location.

Tenants included PriceWaterhouseCoopers, KMPG and

Cammell Laird. Two further phases have since been

completed and are now also occupied, by - amongst

others - the Criminal Records Bureau. The first major

new-build office development in the city since the 1980’s,

Princes Dock remains the largest development of its kind

in the North West.

Crowne Plaza Hotel, Princes Dock

The Crowne Plaza Holiday Inn Hotel at St Nicholas Place

was the first new building erected on the £150 million

Princes Dock development in September 1998. The late

1990’s were also significant in that they also saw the

start of rising confidence in the leisure and business

hotel sectors: the Daulby and Campanile Hotels further

along the river past the Kings Dock appeared at the same

time. In more recent years, additional hotels have

opened at Queen Square (Marriott), Old Haymarket

(Travelodge), Vernon Street (Travel Inn), Chaloner Street

(Ibis and Formule One), Old Hall Street (Radisson) and

Hope Street (Hope Street Hotel) amongst others.

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Waterfront (3)

Since the mid 1980’s, Liverpool Marina has been developed as a high quality and highly desirable residential location. With stunning river

views, it sits directly next to the City Centre and is included here because its success is important in that “City Centre Living” started here for

Liverpool. As prices around the Marina rapidly rose and it became clear there was only a limited amount of land available, developers and

investors looked into the City Centre itself to find redundant buildings ripe for conversion to residential uses, and which Liverpool’s

increasingly affluent citizens could afford as an alternative.

Mariners Wharf, Liverpool Marina

The renaissance of the southern docks and marina for

residential use was started by the former Merseyside

Development Corporation in the mid-1980’s. These

apartments grouped around the marina were amongst

the first to be completed and in December 2003 were

changing hands for £130,000. Living in such a location

only became fashionable in the early 1990’s, and the

decade saw the steady expansion of residential

developments around the marina which now also has a

popular yacht club. In the background can be seen

Liverpool’s famous Anglican Cathedral.

South Ferry Quay, Liverpool Marina

Development around the marina was completed in 2001.

These apartments and 4 storey townhouses at South

Ferry Quay were among the last to be completed, with

units being sold for over £200,000. By December 2003

these were being resold for over £260,000, and in March

2004 one of the 4 bedroomed apartments was for sale at

£320,000. The focus for such development has now

shifted to the northern docks area where the Mersey

Docks & Harbour Company is hoping to repeat the

success of the marina with a mixed use development

featuring 2000 residential units, 300,000 sq ft light

industrial/business units, leisure and tourist

accommodation.

Navigation Wharf, Liverpool Marina

These three storey townhouses, built in 1992 with a price

tag of £99,000, were selling for over £200,000 just ten

years later - an example of how some sectors of

Liverpool’s housing market have performed in recent

years. With more jobs being created in Liverpool than

any other area of the United Kingdom1 the city’s problem

is that it does not have enough quality homes to which

its citizens aspire. Interventions such as the Housing

Market Renewal Initiative will ensure that major

restructuring of the housing offer in Liverpool’s northern

suburbs will repeat the success seen in the City Centre

and South Liverpool’s housing markets.

1 ABI Annual Business Inquiry, 2001

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Commercial (1)

Liverpool’s Commercial District is recognised as having the most important concentration of office activity on Merseyside with over 8,000

people employed in major businesses including Royal Sun Alliance, Littlewoods, British Telecom and the Liverpool Daily Post & Echo. The Old

Hall Street area was radically reconstructed in the early 1970’s with typical bland architecture of the time, but in more recent years this has

been undergoing significant refurbishment allied with environmental improvements to the streetscape.

City Exchange, Old Hall Street

Nominated the Best Building of 2001 at the Liverpool

Architecture and Design Trust Awards, City Exchange at

New Hall Place, was completed in October 2001. The

£10.5 million development has provided a new entrance

atrium and reception to the existing buildings housing

Royal Sun Alliance and the Liverpool Daily Post & Echo.

The removal of the redundant pedestrian walkway

system and footbridges in Old Hall Street has facilitated

this and other developments.

Environmental Improvements, Old Hall Street

A £1.25 million streetscape improvement scheme in the

Old Hall Street area was also completed by the City

Council in the summer of the same year, and the street

now has a number of pavement cafes which are popular

lunch-time meeting places. This was the start of the

Council’s public realm programme, which in late 2003

was extended to encompass many of the tertiary streets

in the surrounding area - most of which will be

completed by summer of 2004.

Beetham Tower, Old Hall Street

The Beetham Organization’s development on the site of

the former Eye Hospital site features a 140,000 square

feet office block, 10 storey 200 bed Radisson hotel, and

30 storey apartment tower with 132 units. This £40

million scheme was completed in early 2004, with

substantial pre-lets having been agreed for the office

space. The hotel opened on 14th February 2004, whilst 1

bedroom apartments were selling for a minimum of

£180,000.

9

Commercial (2)

Although the development of new office space within the Commercial District was fairly limited in the 1980’s, increasing business confidence

has seen a growing interest in providing new, higher quality office floorspace. By 2003, with the amount of available vacant land in the City

Centre gradually decreasing and a proportion of the city centre’s redundant Victorian buildings having been converted to residential uses and

therefore no longer available, rents have been steadily increasing to a point where developers are now more willing to develop speculatively.

Between 1993 and 2002 rents rose 4.5% annually compared to the national average of 3.4%.

100 Old Hall Street

100 Old Hall Street is home of the Littlewoods Group. In

the late 1990’s the building underwent a major

refurbishment programme, including a new entrance

atrium, with vacant space on the some of the floors

above being subsequently rented out to other

businesses. In 2003 the Littlewoods Group sold the

building for £25 million to Bruntwood Estates who are

planning further refurbishment. From 2005 a new public

square to the south of the office block is to be created by

English Cities Fund, enclosed by further new buildings

which will house offices, retail, residential apartments

and a multi-storey car park.

City Square, Tithebarn Street

The £20 million Teesland redevelopment for a 142,000

square feet multi-storey office building which started on

site in early 2004 at City Square next to Moorfields

Merseyrail Station is an example of the type of new, high

specification floorspace for which a strong demand now

exists in the city. The Department for Constitutional

Affairs will occupy six floors of the building, housing the

new civil and family justice centre which will bring

together all the civil courts and family aspect of

Liverpool’s magistrates’ courts under one roof. Another

£60 million scheme, the Sentinel/Unity, will replace the

former Richmond House on Chapel Street with a mixed

use development of offices, apartments and ground floor

retail.

Mercury Court, Tithebarn Street

The Mercury Court office complex was constructed on the

site of the former Tithebarn Street Exchange station in

the mid 1980’s. Behind the building a small pocket park

was laid out, which is a popular summertime lunchtime

venue for the city’s business population. There are now

plans to use the remainder of the platform areas to the

rear (used for parking for the last 20 years) to create a

prestigious new commercial quarter incorporating

offices, car parking, new open space and residential

accommodation. A masterplan for the phased

development of the area has been recently completed by

Liverpool Vision.

10

Commercial (3)

In the late 1990’s, the explosion in City Centre Living saw developers seeking easy options for converting redundant office buildings into

residential apartments for aspiring singles and young couples without children who wished to live close to their place of work. Liverpool City

Council welcome the opportunity to bring semi derelict or vacant outer sections of the Commercial District back into use through such activity.

New uses have included residential, leisure (bars/restaurants) and hotels.

Berey’s Building, Bixteth Street

Despite having been vacant for a number of years and

unsuitable for adaptation for modern office use, many

older buildings in the Commercial District have been

snapped up by developers for conversion to trendy

residential apartments. Berey’s Building on Bixteth

Street was one such £1.5 million conversion completed in

1999. Two bedroomed split-level apartments inside it

now sell for £170,000. Its success has led to other

buildings in the area being converted for residential use,

including Tower Buildings on The Strand, and The Albany

on Old Hall Street which are both expected to be

completed in 2004.

Ziba Bar Brasserie/The Racquet Club,

Covent Garden

As business confidence in the city has grown over the

last few years, the bar, restaurant and hotel sectors have

moved significantly up-market. Although The Racquet

Club on Covent Garden has been established since 1874,

it moved to its current building in the early 1980’s and

has recently undergone significant investment to

improve its bar/restaurant and other facilities to cater for

the growing numbers of daytime business lunches and

the increasing city centre population dominated by

young professional couples wanting a quiet night out as

an alternative to the louder bar/nightclub sector. The

building is also equipped with an exercise room and four

squash courts, together with dining facilities and

hotel/bedroom accommodation, to maintain its

traditions as Liverpool’s premier private members club.

Tower Building, Water Street/The Strand

When the Beetham Organization completed Beetham

Plaza, The Strand became one of the most prestigious

addresses in the city, being in close proximity to the

Waterfront area and the Three Graces. Pierse are looking

to have a similar success with the conversion of

redundant offices in Tower Building, which sits next to St

Nicholas’s Church and on the opposite side of the street

to the Liver Building. Work commenced at the end of

2003, and by the end of 2004 will have provided a

further 93 residential apartments on its first to seventh

floors to the city centre’s growing population. The

ground floor will also be converted for restaurants.

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Live Work District (1)

This historic and architecturally attractive quarter is undergoing fundamental change and renewal as city living becomes ever more popular.

The area has the potential to create a quality architectural mix of both high class and affordable housing whilst main road frontages and

principal streets house banking institutions (centred on Castle Street) and a rapidly growing number of restaurants.

Castle Street

Castle Street forms part of Liverpool’s Waterfront area

which has now been placed on the Government’s list for

designation as a UNESCO World Heritage Site,

recognising its significance as the pre-eminent

commercial port in the nineteenth century at the time of

Britain’s greatest global influence. This will further

enhance its international status, bringing thousands of

additional visitors into the area and resulting in

increased income for the city.

India Buildings, Water Street

India Buildings which stretches between Water Street and

Brunswick Street had its ground floor refurbished in the

early 1990’s with an arcade of shops beneath its many

floors of offices. More recently, a sympathetically

designed access ramp has been provided into the

building, in common with Liverpool City Council policy to

see such improvements to disabled access being made in

grander old buildings where steps usually provided the

only means of access from street level. In January 2004

the building was sold to London-based property company

The Pacific Group of Companies for £45 million, making it

the city’s most expensive-ever property transaction.

Beetham Plaza, The Strand

Beetham Plaza, The Strand, is an imaginative £6 million

conversion of former offices to luxury apartments.

Penthouses were pre-sold at between £310,000 to

£500,000 each prior to its completion in June 2000,

making it one of the most expensive addresses in the

City Centre.

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Live Work District (2)

The Live Work District is an area where growing pressure for City Centre Living has seen redundant former office floorspace being refurbished

and converted to apartments. Traffic will be calmed in both Dale Street and Victoria Street and pedestrian friendly zones will be created in

this district which links the Retail Area with the Commercial District. MerseyTram is also to be introduced to this area, providing a fast and

reliable addition to the public transport infrastructure. Public realm and lighting treatments currently underway will contribute towards a safe

environment.

Baker House, Button Street

The Live Work District includes Mathew Street and the

Cavern Quarter - home to the Mathew Street Festival

and the birthplace of The Beatles - where, over the last

decade, ground floors and basements have been

refurbished for bars and retail, including part of the

original Cavern Club where Sir Paul McCartney has

more recently paid return visits to perform. As the

momentum for City Centre Living continues, upper

floors of the buildings are being converted for

residential apartments, as here at Baker House in

Button Street which was completed in 1998.

Cable House, Cheapside

Cable House, a former engineering works, was converted

into two bedroomed apartments and completed in

December 2001 at a cost of £6 million. It is typical of the

many new residential conversions and new-build

developments which have sprung up in this area over the

last four years. “L3” another development close by, is

another example of existing buildings converted to

residential. This was the former Parcel Force Office on

Hatton Garden. Two bedroomed apartments were selling

at £180,000 in early 2002.

Municipal Buildings, Dale Street

Municipal Buildings on Dale Street sits alongside many

fine architectural buildings. A competitive process is

currently underway for an extension to the rear of the

building to accommodate more centralised city services.

The Council remains one of Merseyside’s major

employers with over 20,000 staff. To the right is the

former Municipal Annexe with former Education Offices

behind it which is to be converted to mixed use including

residential apartments, shops and offices.

13

Live Work District (3)

One of the larger redevelopment schemes in the Live Work District is Urban Splash’s Old Haymarket development which commenced in 1999.

It demonstrates the faith which niche developers operating in the city have in retaining the best of the oldest buildings and creating new

striking architecture next to them. It is no longer practical to zone a city into strict areas of commercial offices or retail, since to be

sustainable in the long term, buildings and areas need to be able to adapt to the changing requirements and aspirations of its citizens.

Old Haymarket

Old Haymarket (formerly Manchester Street) is currently

being redeveloped with a mixture of uses. The building

to the right was refurbished in April 2000 for ground floor

cafes and shops, with residential apartments above at a

cost of £4.5 million. A further phase of this development

is expected to commence in 2004. In the background of

the photograph is The Observatory, part of the Queen

Square development and home to Liverpool Vision.

Travelodge Hotel, Old Haymarket

The £3.5 million 100 bedroomed Travelodge hotel at Old

Haymarket was completed in late 2002. It has office/

commercial space on the ground floor.

The Temple, Temple Square (off Dale Street)

This new build office extension to the rear of The Temple,

Dale Street, was completed early in 2001. The rear

overlooks Temple Square, a former backstreet area which

has been opened up by developer Villagate with the

creation of a new public open space. Surrounding

buildings have been refurbished for office and

commercial use. The final phase of conversion of

Sovereign and Regenecy Chambers to apartments is due

on site by summer 2004, whilst Villagate has also

recently completed a 40,000 square feet speculative

office development in the area.

14

Live Work District (4)

As the student and resident population of the city centre has grown, so has the need to provide services which they require close to their

homes. The sandwich bars and restaurants which traditionally served the business community have now been joined by dry cleaners, a

dental practitioner, health centre and a growing number of newsagents and convenience stores. In 2000, one of the few convenience stores

open after office hours was Spar on Dale Street. Further outlets have since opened in Tithebarn Street and Hatton Garden.

15-19 Sweeting Street

Due to a slowdown in Liverpool’s economy in the late

1970’s, many parts of its city centre escaped wholescale

comprehensive clearance and redevelopment. Sweeting

Street off Castle Street is typical of many smaller back

streets which retain a pre-20th century character with

attractive buildings that are becoming increasingly

popular for conversion to residential. The narrow streets

have limited ingress by cars, and therefore provide quiet

backwaters. 15-19 Sweeting Street was converted to 15

apartments with ground floor licensed premises by

Westpoint in 2001, at a cost of £1.5 million.

Victoria Hall, Hatton Garden/Tithebarn Street

This £5 million 415 bedroom student village was

completed in late 2000. It was built over an existing car

park, which remains on the ground floor - with additional

space having been allowed for the inclusion of a

newsagents/foodstore to serve the growing student and

residential population in the area.

Travel Inn, Vernon Street

The £6 million Travel Inn Hotel opened in July 2003.

Significantly it does not have a frontage onto one of the

city’s main streets, yet demonstrates the confidence of

its operators that a backstreet location can still be

successful in this market. Major streetwork

improvements are currently underway, including the

creation of a new public square adjacent to the hotel. On

the opposite side of Vernon Street sits NCP’s Moorfields

Car Park, one of the 1990’s better examples of multi-

storey car park design.

15

Lime Street Gateway (1)

Lime Street Gateway encompasses Liverpool’s Cultural Quarter, and is home to some of its classical buildings such as the National Museums

and Galleries for Merseyside in the form of the Liverpool Museum and Walker Art Gallery. The Central Library and Picton Reading Rooms also

form part of this historic group, whilst opposite them sits St George’s Hall.

Liverpool Museum, William Brown Street

In early 2003, Liverpool Museum was the subject of a

£33 million refurbishment scheme which included the

provision of a new ground level entrance area. The

Museum now offers free admission, and is both an

educational and memorable experience for parties of

school children.

St George’s Building & St John’s Gardens

The attractive St John’s Garden to the rear of St George’s

Hall is one of Liverpool City Centre’s pleasant open

spaces. St George’s Hall is currently undergoing a £14.8

million refurbishment courtesy of the Heritage Lottery

Fund to improve physical access to the building,

restoration work, the reopening of the Small Concert

Room, new pavement level at the southern end, and

visitor facilities.

Commutation Plaza, Commutation Place

This £4.1 million development, completed in February

2002, is now the headquarters of Maritime Housing

Association, incorporating residential apartments. The

site, at the top end of William Brown Street, had been

derelict for many years. When this building was first

suggested, there was much debate about its design,

since it was to face some of Liverpool’s most classical

buildings. The end result is considered a commendable

achievement which does not detract from the

architectural integrity of the area.

16

Lime Street Gateway (2)

Lime Street Gateway is so named because of its significance as the northern entrance to the City Centre. Lime Street Station is an important

terminus for main line rail services (although it does give access to Liverpool’s underground rail network) and it is here that many visitors to

Liverpool arrive and experience their first view of the city and what it has to offer.

North Western Hall, Lime Street

North Western Hall - adjacent to Lime Street Station - was

refurbished in 1997 to provide student accommodation.

It was originally built in 1871 as a 330 room hotel at the

front of Lime Street Station, in the French Renaissance

style. It is typical of the many grand Liverpool buildings

which had once been vacant for many years, but have

now been successfully brought back into use.

Lime Street Station

Lime Street Station had its roof reconstructed in 2000 at a

cost of £20 million. Improvements were also made to the

interior concourse which now has a number of shops and

cafes provided for waiting passengers. Although the station

is the terminus for main line rail connection from London and

the rest of the country, it is linked via an underground rail

system to north and south local train services, and to the

west under the River Mersey to the Wirral. This Merseyrail

system is an important part of the local transport network,

and - in recent years - has seen investment in new stations.

The station has recently been designated a “Major Station”,

with control for its development passing to Network Rail. An

extended programme of phased refurbishment is now

planned, including a new entrance from Lime Street

following the proposed demolition of the exterior 1960’s

shopping concourse which currently obscures part of the

station’s grand façade.

Empire Theatre, Lime Street

In July 2002 The Empire Theatre opened its £10.5 million

extension to provide enhanced audience facilities and a

new box office. Liverpool has a thriving theatre industry,

and nearby are the Royal Court Theatre, and the

Liverpool Playhouse.

17

Retail Area (1)

Liverpool evolved from a market town to become the most famous trading City in the world. Formerly, one of the UK’s major shopping centres,

Liverpool’s retail status declined during the 1990’s in the face of competition from its regional rivals and the growth of out-of-town retail

centres such as The Trafford Centre near Manchester and Cheshire Oaks near Ellesmere Port. There is now a major opportunity to address this

situation and re-establish Liverpool as a premier retail destination.

Parker Street

Superdrug and Tesco Metro both arrived in Parker Street

in 1996, whilst Liverpool’s landmark Beacon reopened in

summer 2000 as a broadcasting station for Radio City.

Tesco, Kwik Save and Lidl were the first major food chains

to realise the potential for opening stores in the city

centre to meet the demands from an increasing

residential population Over the past 12 months new

foodstores have arrived including Sainsbury’s who

recently opened a store in the refurbished Central Station

complex in March 2002 and Somerfields on Lord Street.

St John’s Shopping Centre

St John’s Shopping Centre was built in the early 1970’s in

a style which today would be viewed with some distaste.

However, its owners - Land Securities - have continually

invested in upgrading and enhancing the centre to

correct the mistakes made when it was originally

created. In 2003 the company embarked on a

programme to reposition some of the anchor stores

around the complex, and in November of that year

succeeded in attracting Wilkinsons to their list of tenants

which also includes Woolworths, Poundland and Argos.

Land Securities also confirmed the trend that Liverpool’s

citizens are spending more than ever when they

announced that customer numbers to the centre had

risen 6.3% in the year, whilst car park income had

increased by 24.3%.

Clayton Square Shopping Centre

Clayton Square Shopping Centre opened in the late

1980’s and is mentioned here because of its significance

as one of the last major retail schemes in the city for a

decade. It has proven how retail units do not remain

vacant for long if they are in a popular location and an

environment of such quality. Although there is currently

a proposal to fill in part of the arcaded section to Great

Charlotte Street, Clayton Square’s problem is that it is

unable to expand any further in order to create

additional floorspace. Inevitably, the demand for more

retail space of this quality led to the birth of the Paradise

Street Development Area proposals.

18

Retail Area (2)

The Main Retail Area is currently undergoing a major streetscape improvement programme. In December 2003, retail experts Gerald Eve voted

Liverpool as the most improved city for shopping, highlighting its accessibility, parking and public transport improvements that had taken

place between 2000 and 2003. Although the city is 13h in the overall list of shopping destinations as at March 2004 (in 2002 it was 18th),

European Capital of Culture status and the emerging Paradise Street Development Area proposals are expected to significantly boost its

position in the league table in the next few years.

Bluecoat Chambers, School Lane

Bluecoat Chambers was originally built as a charity

school in 1717 and is in the Queen Anne style. The

Bluecoat School remained here until 1906 when it moved

to more spacious premises in Wavertree. The building

was vacant until 1927 when the Bluecoat Society of Arts

acquired it to become a cultural and arts centre for the

city. Grade I listed, it sits adjacent to the Paradise Street

Development Area. The society will be embarking on a

£9 million refurbishment programme for the building to

provide enhanced facilities for arts and heritage,

education, retail and tourism - including a new wing

containing gallery and performance space.

Liverpool Playhouse, Williamson Square

The Liverpool Playhouse Theatre (centre of photograph)

was the subject of a £3 million refurbishment scheme

and re-opened in late 2001. To the right is department

store John Lewis, which underwent a major £6 million

refurbishment in early 2002. Williamson Square is also

overlooked (off photo to the left) by the £6 million

extension to the St John’s Shopping Centre, housing JJB

Sports - amongst others - and completed in 1999. The

Square itself is currently undergoing a major

relandscaping project to add an exciting new water

feature, which will be completed in late 2004.

Cavern Walks - Vivienne Westwood

Even before Paradise Street has been completed the

retail fashion industry received a significant boost when

Vivienne Westwood opened her second store outside

London in Cavern Walks off Mathew Street in October

2003. Built in the early 1980’s, the Cavern Walks

development has undergone considerable refurbishment

- the latest £2 million scheme coming to a close in early

2004. Its owner, Warner Estate Holdings recently

announced plans to expand onto adjacent land and

improve access from Dorans Lane. Office space above is

already used by, amongst others, 400 Direct Line

Insurance staff.

19

Retail Area (3)

Grosvenor has been given the green light for re-development of the Paradise Street Development Area, a £750 million retail, leisure and

residential scheme in the city’s historic Bluecoat area. The scheme will set to be the largest city centre regeneration project in Europe and will

set a benchmark for the next generation of international city centre development. In anticipation of its impact on the city centre retail offer,

some retailers have been looking to move into Liverpool earlier, whilst existing ones are considering expanding where possible.

The Great Escape & current streetscape works

In the mid 1990’s, Liverpool’s retail area’s streetscape

was enhanced by the addition of a number of new

sculpture works, including “The Great Escape”. The city

centre is currently undergoing a major programme of

streetworks, with £5 million being invested in the retail

area alone to provide new pavings, street furniture,

signage and sculpture features. This programme

commenced in September 2003 and will take

approximately 12 months to complete.

Paradise Street Development Area

The Paradise Street Development Area, (PSDA), will

provide for a mix of uses including retail (75,000 square

metres net additional comparison floor space), food and

drink, leisure, residential apartments (750 units),

recording studios, offices, Meeting Hall, gallery, ancillary

accommodation, two hotels, new bus station, bus

layover provision plus ancillary facilities, 3,000 car

parking spaces, new means of access, public open space

including a new public park (2.2 hectares) and

associated servicing, highway works and landscaping.

The development has a significant location in that it acts

as a hub linking other major area of the city centre: the

Albert Dock, main shopping area and RopeWalks.

Zara Store, Church Street

In anticipation of the Paradise Street Development Area’s

expanded retail offer, some companies have been unable

to wait - having already seen the opportunity to move

into Liverpool to serve its citizens’ growing desire to

spend. Zara, a major new fashion clothes store arrived

in December 2001 after Next vacated the store to move

into larger premises further along Church Street (and

create their largest store in the UK). GAP also arrived in

the former Mothercare Store on the opposite side of the

street, whilst River Island embarked on a £3 million

refurbishment nearby.

20

Retail Area (4)

The start of Liverpool’s renaissance as a shopping and leisure destination was slow to start, but once underway would prove to be the start of

a rapid transformation. Queen Square lay vacant for two decades, its previous buildings having been cleared in the early 1970’s for a civic

centre which never materialised. The site was acquired by Neptune Developments in the late 1990’s to create a new public square surrounded

by buildings mostly to serve the leisure industry. Critical to the scheme was the restructuring of the Roe Street Bus Passenger Facility which

would bring thousands of passengers into the heart of the area every day.

Queen Square Centre

Queen Square, the Roe Street/Queen Square Bus

Passenger Facility Building, was completed in 1999 at a

cost of £1.5 million. It also houses a tourist information

centre. Its completion signalled the start of Liverpool

City Council’s commitment to improving the city’s public

transport infrastructure.

Millennium House, Whitechapel

Queen Square saw the creation of nine restaurants, bars

and fast food outlets at a cost of £6 million when

completed in 1999. Two years earlier, Neptune

Developments were also responsible for the construction

of Millennium House (background of above photograph)

which is now home to a number of Liverpool City Council

departments. In 2003, the ground floor of Millennium

House was converted to a gymnasium to serve the

growing health and fitness industry in the city.

Marriott Hotel, Queen Square

Lunchtime customers enjoy the midday sun outside La

Tasca Restaurant, Queen Square, which is overlooked by

the £13.5 million Marriott Hotel completed in 1998. The

Queen Square scheme won the RTPI “Best Major Project

Award” in 1999.

21

RopeWalks (1)

RopeWalks is a unique area of the city known for its concentration of historic warehouse buildings, and increasingly as the centre for

Liverpool’s night-time economy and creative industries. The area owes much of its character and name to the craft of rope making for sailing

ships that dominated the area until the 19th century. In the late 1990’s the Liverpool RopeWalks Partnership was responsible for co-

ordinating the regeneration of the area through development and conservation, public realm improvements and training, employment and

business support. This partnership regime and its funding has now ended, and the programme of work nearing completion. Liverpool Vision

is currently developing plans for promoting further development in the area.

Colquitt Street

One of Liverpool RopeWalks Partnership’s many

successes was the £14 million streetscape

refurbishment of the area with high quality materials in

2002. This is the junction of Colquitt Street and Seel

Street, which also demonstrates how - encouraged by

the investment seen in the area - businesses have

improved their own frontages.

Concert Square

RopeWalks is also the hub of Liverpool’s nightlife sector,

with bars and clubs proving popular destinations for the

city’s night life economy. Concert Square was one of

Manchester-based company Urban Splash’s first

successful projects in Liverpool, which also provided

residential apartments on upper floors of adjacent

buildings when completed in 1995. It would prove what

was possible in an area of semi dereliction, and since

that time the RopeWalks area has developed into a

thriving sector of the city centre.

Bold Street

Bold Street is one of Liverpool’s favourite shopping

streets following its relandscaping in 1995. It now

contains a mixture of medium-sized stores down small-

scale family run businesses, cafés and bars which are

popular with Liverpool’s student population. Shoppers

like the range of individual and specialist shops which

are found here.

22

RopeWalks (2)

The Liverpool RopeWalks Partnership grew out of the Duke Street Action Plan which was originally drawn up in the mid 1990’s by Liverpool

City Council. It was Merseyside’s designation as an Objective 1 area by the European Union in the mid 1990’s that eventually saw the funding

which the area desperately needed to get its regeneration programme underway. In total, the area received £14.5 million ERDF funding, a

further £14.1 million from the North West Development Agency, £4 million Arts Lottery, £0.9 million Heritage Lottery, £2.6 million City Council

and £19.6 million private sector funding.

Chinese Arch, Nelson Street

Liverpool’s Chinatown sits within the RopeWalks area,

and is believed to be the oldest established Chinese

community in the country. In early 2000, the newly

refurbished streetscape in Nelson Street was

completed with the addition of a new Chinese Arch, the

largest in Europe.

Campbell Square

Campbell Square, a major £16 million redevelopment

scheme at the western end of the RopeWalks area,

providing 125 residential units, 30,000 square feet office

floorspace, 3 bars, restaurant and a new public square

was completed in late 2002. Many of the finer

warehouse and old buildings, including the Old

Bridewell, have been retained and refurbished alongside

new buildings to bring life back to what had been a dying

part of the City Centre. The scheme won an RTPI award

in 2003.

Balcony Apartments, Henry Street

Former warehouse converted for residential use, Henry

Street circa 1999. Many adjoining buildings in Henry

Street and Lydia Anne Street - mostly former warehouses

- are also currently being refurbished or redeveloped. As

a further boost to secure continuing improvement of the

area, a £6 million Artists’ Village is under construction

providing studio space for 70 artists, gallery space, café

and apartments.

23

RopeWalks (3)

In terms of employment, 815 new jobs have been created, along with a further 226 indirect jobs. This was in addition to construction and

training jobs used during the various construction projects. Early 2004 will see the completion of East Village and Manhattan Place, one of

the largest development projects centred around Kent Street, a £20 million mixed use scheme featuring a training centre for Liverpool

Community College, apartments, workspace, shops and cafes.

Manoli’s Yard, Colquitt Street

Manoli’s Yard grew on the site of former Wetheralls

Factory. Completed in June 2002, apartments in this

stylish residential block which includes office space,

were available for rent in early 2004 at over £600 per

month.

FACT Centre, Wood Street

The £10 million FACT (Foundation for Art & Creative

Technology) Centre was developed to house a film and

arts centre, and café/restaurant. The first purpose built

arts project in Liverpool for over 60 years, its two

galleries feature newly commissioned work or projects

new to the UK by established and emerging international

artists working in film, video and new media. Opened in

February 2003, it includes three cinemas and is one of

the most significant developments in RopeWalks and has

helped to raise the area’s profile in the city.

Tea Factory, Wood Street

“The Tea Factory” on Wood Street is an example of the

high quality conversions of former industrial space in

this part of the City Centre which has been transformed

into a mixed use building containing offices, workshops,

gallery/exhibition space, retail and penthouse

residential apartments. This £9 million scheme was

completed in Spring 2002, and its thirty £150,000

penthouse apartments all sold on the first day of their

release. The Tea Factory Bar, Kitchen and Bluu

restaurant have opened on the ground floor.

24

L1/Baltic (1)

The Baltic Triangle is an historic port area bordered by RopeWalks, the Paradise Street Development Area and Kings Dock. Currently it

contains the Waterfront Business Park, and has seen significant investment in recent years with the opening of two new hotels and the

refurbishment of some historic warehouse buildings for new commercial and leisure uses. In 2001 Liverpool Vision and the L1 Partnership

appointed consultants to provide a master plan framework for the area. A key challenge will be how to support the interests of existing

businesses whilst realising potential for new residential and commercial investment. The vision for The Baltic Triangle is a vibrant mixed-use

quarter featuring businesses, refurbished historic warehouses and opportunities for striking contemporary architecture, whilst the former

Council estate along Great George Street is to be replaced with high quality private residential development bordering Great George’s Square

which will also be refurbished. As an example of the pressure which the area faces to allow residential developers to move in, an application

for one £40 million development of over 300 apartments and new piazza was submitted in November 2003.

Super Lamb Banana, Wapping

Liverpool’s “Super-Lamb-Banana” sculpture provoked

controversy when it first appeared in the city in 1997, but

its current position outside the premises of Joseph P

Lamb’s ship’s chandlers on Wapping has made it one of

Liverpool’s most often recognised new additions to the

city’s sculptural heritage.

Ibis Hotel, Wapping

The Ibis and Formule 1 Hotels, completed in January 2001

at a cost of £5 million. Although the area was improved

in the 1980’s by the Merseyside Development

Corporation, parts of the area have come under

increasing pressure in recent years by developers wishing

to build high quality residential apartments and a number

of schemes are now underway close to the hotels. In

response, the future of this area is therefore being

reassessed as to whether parts of it can be rezoned from

purely industrial to mixed use to accommodate this.

Blundell Restaurant, Blundell Street

L1 / Baltic area is characterised by many historic

warehouses which need to be retained and preserved.

The Blundell Restaurant opened early in 2002, and is a

good example of how these old buildings can be

successfully converted to modern uses where their

former use is no longer an option.

25

Marybone (1)

Marybone consists mostly of a long established residential community to the north of the city centre. It provides an important source of

family accommodation in the city centre and one of the city centre’s four primary schools. In recent years there has been significant

investment by Liverpool John Moores University in new student facilities. New apartments have also been built in the Highfield Street area to

the west of this zone and Pall Mall.

Avril Robarts Centre, Tithebarn Street

The Avril Robarts Learning Resources Centre at the

junction of Tithebarn Street and Vauxhall Road was

opened in 1997 by Liverpool John Moores University.

Beyond can be seen the first phase of Cosmopolitan

Housing Association’s £8 million redevelopment for

ground floor 300 seat lecture theatre, bar and retail with

students flats above. It was completed in Autumn 2001,

and from 2004 will house a new health centre and

pharmacy catering for the growing residential population

of the city centre. A second phase costing another £8

million which will contain further student apartments

and offices is due for completion in mid 2004.

Imperial Halls, Fontenoy Street

Imperial Halls is another example of student

accommodation. The building, a former bottling works,

had been vacant for many years. The numbers of

students living in the city centre has grown significantly

in recent years as many purpose built or refurbished

schemes such as this have been completed in order to

cater for them.

Bellway Development, Pall Mall

153 new apartments came onto the market when

Bellway Homes completed its £3 million Pall Mall

development in early 2003. Prices ranged between

£140,000 to £160,000 for two bedroomed units. The site

was previously occupied by a former lead works which

had been derelict for many years.

26

Marybone (2)

Marybone is a somewhat quieter area of the City Centre, but still retains some commercial buildings providing employment. Until the late

1980’s it was dominated by a depressing maze of 1930’s Council maisonettes and flats which had been cleared and lay vacant for over a

decade. Vauxhall Gardens was created on the same site, a mix of more traditional houses for rent. However, in recent years the area has seen

a greater concentration of apartments for private sale.

30-32 Pall Mall

30-32 Pall Mall was refurbished for offices in early 2001.

This quieter area of the city centre still retains some

commercial buildings providing employment.

Audi Dealer, Pall Mall

Since 1995 Liverpool has seen a growth in the number of

prestige car dealerships investing in new high quality

showrooms on major approach roads to the City Centre.

This Audi dealer arrived at the junction of Leeds Street

and Pall Mall in 2000. Behind can be seen a new office

building by Kingham Knight Associates, completed

summer 2002.

Highfield Gardens

Highfield Gardens was one of the first major residential

schemes completed in the city centre in 1996.

27

University Edge (1)

The London Road area to the north of the University Edge area enjoys a strategic location at the periphery of the city centre, providing a

refurbished shopping centre serving a growing new residential community. The area was previously in decline, but a rescue package of cash

came from the City Challenge programme in the early 1990’s when the London Road Development Association was set up. The LRDA ran until

1998, but it had laid the foundations for the area’s renaissance which is still underway.

Arndale House, London Road

89-101 London Road was re-elevated in 1997 as part of

the initial refurbishment of the London Road area. These

shops overlook the square which was relandscaped a

few years earlier, and currently hosts a popular weekly

market. This centre, the closest to Liverpool City Centre,

retains its own TJ Hughes store and hosts a number of

specialist shops for which rents in the City Centre itself

are too expensive.

169-175 London Road

Two bedroomed apartments at 169-175 London Road with

retail units on the ground floor, completed in July 1999. In

addition to the many new apartments which sprang up in

this previously decaying area, new shops also appeared in

the district centre. Food retailing for the revitalising and

growing new community was boosted with the opening of

a new Lidl store further along the street.

Monument Buildings, London Road

Housing Associations have been actively involved in

regenerating some of the most difficult parts of the city

in which to attract investment. Experience has shown

that once Housing Associations get involved and are

prepared to invest in high quality buildings in an area,

the private sector can sometimes subsequently show an

interest in the area as well. These apartments,

completed in 1997 with ground floor retail commercial

units, are available for rent from one of the many

Housing Associations operating in the city. The success

of this scheme led to the private sector wanting to repeat

it - see 169-175 London Road, opposite.

28

University Edge (2)

The London Road area is also home to the Royal Liverpool Teaching Hospital, whilst the former Royal Infirmary has been refurbished to

provide teaching and research facilities for the Health Authority and Universities. To the north is a mixture of light industrial uses.

London Road/Norton Street junction

London Road had two major gateway building projects.

“Gateway 1” (right) was completed in Summer 2001 at a

cost of £2.1 million to provide new shops, offices and

residential accommodation. “Gateway 2”, another

building with similar uses, was completed mid 2002.

Brownlow Hill

Riverside Housing Association homes, Brownlow Hill -

part of a £13 million programme of housing

improvements carried out on the St Andrew’s Gardens

area between 1994 and 1999. The various Housing

Associations work closely with the City Council on the

regeneration of Liverpool’s suburbs as well as the city

centre. This area also has some of the city centre’s share

of family housing.

University of Liverpool, Pembroke Place

The former Royal Infirmary, now refurbished to provide

teaching and research facilities for the Liverpool Primary

Care Trusts and Universities cost £12 million by the time

of its completion in 1999. It includes The Foresight

Centre which offers conferencing facilities.

29

University Edge (3)

The southern end of the University Edge is dominated by the University of Liverpool itself, and is currently undergoing a massive expansion of

its facilities. Liverpool is one of the country’s most popular choices of destination for students in the country, its popularity growing faster

than Oxford and Cambridge* as applications to study rose 12% between 2003 and 2004 - with 28,232 applying for courses commencing in

September 2004. The University is currently in the middle of an ongoing capital investment programme to improve facilities and services for

students and staff, and this has undoubtedly enhanced the reputation of Liverpool as a leading centre of teaching and research.

(* as reported in Liverpool Daily Post, Feb 18, 2004)

Lynda McCartney Centre, Liverpool Hospital

The £4 million Linda McCartney Centre and Education

Centre, Royal Liverpool University Hospital, Prescot

Street. It was opened in November 2000 in order to treat

many forms of cancer and thrust Merseyside to the

forefront of cancer treatment, providing expertise in the

management of cancer and specialist diagnostic and

therapeutic techniques.

University of Liverpool Life Biosciences Centre

The £23 million Biosciences Centre and Business

Incubator completed in summer 2003 will be a key

facility for the University’s biological and biomedical

sciences community, which is one of the largest life

sciences groups in the UK, and for biosciences and

biomedical businesses. The Centre will be a key facility

for the University’s biological and biomedical sciences

community, which is one of the largest life sciences

groups in the UK, and for biosciences and biomedical

businesses in the region.

Faculty of Medicine, Crown Street

The £6 million Sherringham Buildings were completed

in April 2002, and contain two lecture theatres, seminar

rooms and a cafeteria. The fast-track graduate-entry

medicine programme taught here has become one of

the most popular courses for which students are

applying to enter.

30

Hope (1)

The Hope Street Quarter represents an opportunity to create a vibrant, mixed-use community that builds upon the significant arts,

educational, architectural and spiritual legacy of this part of Liverpool. It is home to the city’s two cathedrals and universities as well as major

cultural institutions like the Philharmonic Hall, The Everyman and Unity theatres and the Liverpool Institute of Performing Arts.

St James Gardens, Liverpool Anglican Cathedral

St James Gardens is an attractive and important area of

public open space within the City Centre. A programme

of works is currently underway with the aim of improving

the gardens for both local residents and visitors who

come to the area. Footpaths are being renewed, along

with benches, litter bins, information and entrance

signage. The Huskisson Memorial, a Grade II listed

structure, will also be restored. The works are expected

to be completed by May 2004.

Metropolitan Cathedral of Christ the King

In 2002, construction work started on new £1.4 million

offices and civic space surrounding the Metropolitan

Cathedral. By late 2003, the new grand series of steps

envisaged in the original on the Hope Street axis had

been completed - as was in the original 1960’s design. A

restaurant has been opened, with gardens built above its

roof (to the right of the steps shown in the artist’s

impression above).

Science Park, Mount Pleasant

For a number of years, Liverpool’s Universities have been

at the forefront in pioneering new technologies and

business ideas which its graduating students have shown

interest in developing. The first phase of the Science Park

currently being constructed by Neptune to the west of the

new Cathedral steps (see to the left of the steps on the

artist’s impression opposite) will provide incubator units

for new breakout businesses from the Universities when

completed in late 2004. “The Foundation” (shown at top

right of the impression opposite) will provide further

“move on” office space for the Science Park, and is

expected to be completed in 2005.

31

Hope (2)

Sitting next to the University Zone, the Hope area of the city centre has also seen considerable investment by Liverpool’s two universities.

Cathedral Gate/Upper Duke Street

Liverpool John Moores University was the former

Liverpool Polytechnic. Like the University of Liverpool, it

has also been expanding its facilities, including these

buildings which appeared in the mid 1990’s. New

buildings now stretch down Upper Duke Street to its

junction with Great George Street.

Liverpool Community College, Clarence Street

The £7 million Community College was completed in 2001.

Agnes Jones House, Catharine Street

The expansion of the universities has also seen a rise in

quality student accommodation in this area. Agnes

Jones House, (the former Catharine Street Womens

Hospital), was completed in 1999. Further phases

included new residential blocks built behind it, and were

completed in 2001.

32

Hope (3)

In addition to the Universities operating within the area, Hope is also home to a fairly stable residential community. Rodney Street (originally

constructed 1782-1801) continues to flourish as an office district. 59 Rodney Street has been acquired by the National Trust: this building was

the former home of Chambre Hardman, the well known 20th century photographer whose collection of 140,000 photographs includes the

world famous shot of the Ark Royal under construction at Cammell Laird. With funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, The National Trust have

been restoring the house to its former glory of the 1950’s, including the construction of a visitor welcome centre with disabled access from

Pilgrim Street. The restoration will be completed by Summer 2004.

13-19 Pilgrim Street

The Beetham Organization completed this terrace of new

build housing in Pilgrim Street in 1998. An example of

sympathetic architecture which blends in with the

traditional historic terraces of the area.

LIPA, Mount Street

The Liverpool Institute for the Performing Arts (or LIPA),

was officially opened by Sir Paul McCartney in 1996.

LIPA is dedicated to providing the best teaching and

learning for people who want to pursue and maintain a

lasting career in the popular performing arts economy.

Sir Paul McCartney makes frequent visits to Liverpool

and has consistently remained one of the greatest

supporters of the city, its culture and its people.

Liverpool Community College: Arts Centre,

Myrtle Street

The £8 million Arts Centre was completed in January

1999. With 800,000 square metres of space it is not only

the largest building of its kind in the UK but is also the

only centre of its kind which covers the full spectrum of

the arts. Music and technology, dance, drama, art and

design, graphics, fashion and clothing, photography and

professional media make up the 60 courses offered here,

catering for more than 1,300 students.

33

Hope (4)

The Hope Street area has also developed its leisure facilities to serve the growing residential, student, business and tourist populations.

The Varsity Pub, Myrtle Street

The Varsity Pub is one of a number of establishments

created in the growing student quarter of the city. It

stands next to the Arts Centre (see opposite) and has

behind it a large complex of over 500 new student

apartments all completed in 1999.

Hope Street Hotel, Hope Street

The £1.5 million “4-5 star boutique” Hope Street Hotel

was completed in December 2003. Its ground floor

houses a popular and stylish restaurant.

Unity Theatre, Hope Place

The Unity Theatre was refurbished and the front of its

building in this quiet city centre street was rebuilt with

improved disabled access in early 2002. The theatre

itself is one of Liverpool’s most ground breaking venues

with a diverse range of productions usually on a small

scale. Often promoting the work of new playwrights and

theatre companies, it has a reputation based on

providing quality performances from up and coming

theatre groups and in recent years has gained a loyal

following. The theatre was Winner of the ‘Performing

Arts Venue of the Year’ award in the Mersey Tourism

Awards 2000

34

Canning (1)

Like Hope, the Canning area retains much of its historic Georgian and early Victorian architecture, interspersed with more modern examples of

architectural diversity.

66 Huskisson Street

The private sector has been very active in the Canning

district since property prices have been rising. Many of

these houses have been converted to apartments. This

typical example, completed at the end of 2003, now

features five apartments.

Canning Street

Canning Street, with its rows of Georgian houses, has

become a fashionable place to live, with a number of

properties being refurbished in recent years both as

apartments and family homes. In 2004, some of these

were being sold for as much as £250,000. The area is

also much favoured by film companies who use this and

surrounding streets to recreate period dramas for both

films and television series.

Falkner Terrace, Upper Parliament Street

Housing Associations such as Cosmopolitan have been

instrumental in retaining and restoring many of the fine

classical residential terraces in the area. Falkner Terrace

sits on one of the major gateway routes into the city

centre, and therefore gives an important “shop window”

glimpse of Liverpool’s Georgian heritage to passing

visitors to the city. Originally refurbished as bedsits in

the late 1990’s, some of these are now being converted

to more upmarket apartments as property prices in this

area have soared.

35

University of Liverpool Management School, Chatham Street

Liverpool is now one of the prime locations in the UK to build a business.

The £8 million University of Liverpool Management School opened in

September 2002 in order to cater for students wishing to pursue a career

in business management.

Produced by marketing@liverpool on behalf of Regeneration Portfolio, Liverpool City Council. July 2004. 2656/JM/AH/0407