Liverpool approves Kinrise’s Martins Bank overhaul 

The historic Water Street building will house 140,000 sq ft of grade A office accomodation once complete. 

Liverpool City Council has given Kinrise the green light to overhaul the Martins Bank Building, which has been vacant for more than a decade. 

Working with architects Red Deer and Brock Carmichael, planning consultant Arup and pre-construction advisor Lendlease, Kinrise plans to retain and restore the building’s original features and create a fully carbon-neutral building.   

The scheme will see the upper floors converted into offices, while the ground floor will house community space and a restaurant in the former banking hall. 

Speaking at a recent Place North West event, Kinrise co-founder George Aberdeen said he expects Martins Bank to demand the highest rents in the city once it completes in 2024. 

Kinrise, which also owns Manchester’s Sunlight House, bought the grade two-listed former bank from a subsidiary of Starwood Capital last year for around £16m. 

The previous owner twice had plans approved to convert the property into a 215-bedroom hotel but work never started on site.   

To view the plans for the building, use application reference numbers 22F/1712 and 22l/1793 on Liverpool City Council’s planning portal.