Double planning joy for Davos in Liverpool

The property development arm of TJ Morris has secured consent for two apartment schemes totalling 258 units in the Baltic Triangle.

Davos Property was granted planning approval for 59 apartments off Blundell Street and another 199 flats off Greenland Street.

Land bound by Blundell Street, Kitchen Street, and Simpson Street

The scheme features a bridge linking the new-build element and the existing three-storey warehouse. Credit: via planning documents

Rising to eight storeys at its tallest point, Davos’ scheme will provide 27 one-bedroom apartments and 32 with two bedrooms.

The site currently features a three-storey warehouse that will be incorporated into the scheme, with a two-storey link bridge connecting the existing building with the part six-storey, part eight-storey new build.

Three commercial units will occupy 4,500 sq ft of the ground floor, with the largest being 1,600 sq ft and the smallest 1,400 sq ft.

Residential amenities include a nearly 1,000 sq ft communal roof terrace on the sixth floor of the block, as well as 600 sq ft of internal amenity space no the first floor. Apartments would also have private balconies.

There is no parking built into the project.

None of the homes would be designated as affordable and there would not be any contributions made to off-site affordable housing because of viability concerns.

A review mechanism will be put into the planning agreement so that viability can be reassessed upon completion.

A viability statement published by planner Savills and with analysis from Zerum puts the project’s development cost at £13m.

Davos’s application is not the first for the site – TaylorHighdale had received an intention to approve for its plans for 86 flats five years ago, however a legal agreement for the scheme was never signed off.

In addition to Falconer Chester Hall, Savills, and Zerum, the project team includes: CHBS, Garry Miller Heritage Consultancy, Orion Fire, Futureserv, Acoustic & Engineering Consultants, Prime Transport Planning, and Hydrock.

Land bounded by Greenland Street, St James Street, and New Bird Street

Situated close to the future Liverpool Baltic Station, Davos’s second application is for a a five- to 13-storey block with 199 apartments, and nearly 2,000 sq ft of commercial space on a half-acre, brownfield site.

The site, which is currently vacant, was last used as a contractor’s site for Legacie’s nearby Parliament Square development.

Off the 199 homes proposed, 89 would be one-bedroom flats and 110 would be two-bedroom residences. These two-bedroom properties include 12 duplex apartments, half of which would front directly onto Greenland Street.

All of the apartments include either a balcony, private terrace, or Juliet balcony.

None of the homes would be designated as affordable, as per viability concerns.

A viability statement from planner Savills puts the gross development cost for the project at £56.8m.

Falconer Chester Hall is the architect for the project.

The team also includes CHBS, Garry Miller Heritage Consultancy, Orion Fire, Futureserv, Prime Transport Planning, Hydrock, and GIA.

To learn more about the scheme, search for application reference 25F/1191 on Liverpool City Council’s planning portal.

Rob Brym, project architect at Falconer Chester Hall, said: “The starting point was the need for light and airy homes in which residents will want to put down roots, but after that the two sites provided quite different contexts for us to interpret.

“Greenland Street has the room to go a bit taller and its elevated position will give many of the homes lovely views towards Wales, the business district skyscrapers and to the cathedrals.  Blundell Street, by contrast takes as its cue the tighter, more urban grain of its location and the classic dockland warehouse vernacular.  Residents here will feel very much connected to Baltic’s vibe.”

Matt Sobic, director at planning consultancy Savills, said the projects will benefit from proximity to the planned Baltic Triangle station.

“Liverpool’s Metro is one of the most comprehensive urban transit networks in the UK and the connectivity it will offer residents means they enjoy quick access to the regional and national rail networks.

“There’s an increasing trend among city centre residents to forego cars in favour of public transport, ride sharing and short-term car hire and these trends are particularly evident in Baltic.”