Liverpool looks to approve 325 homes
Applications from Davos Property Developments and Westchurch Homes, which have a cumulative estimated development cost of £74m, are recommended for approval by city council officers ahead of the planning committee meeting next week.
Davos, the property development arm of TJ Morris, has two proposals that will be debated at the meeting – one for 59 apartments off Blundell Street and another for 199 flats off Greenland Street. Both projects are situated in the Baltic Triangle.
Savills is leading on the planning for both. The consultancy’s Matt Sobic, who is leading on the projects, said: “Both are long-term stalled sites and despite some tricky economic headwinds our client is keen to see them play their part in the Baltic’s ongoing regeneration.”
Westchurch Homes’s plans are for 47 houses and 20 flats on land off Vauxhall Road. The project’s residences would all be designated as affordable dwellings. Like the Davos applications, this is also for a stalled site.
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The Blundell Street project features a bridge linking the new-build element and the existing three-storey warehouse. Credit: via planning documents
Land bound by Blundell Street, Kitchen Street, and Simpson Street
- Application reference: 25F/0791
The smaller of the two Davos applications, this one centres on a nearly one-acre site with a 1916-warehouse and former theatre on it. This three-storey warehouse has been incorporated into the designs by architect Falconer Chester Hall, 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.
Apartments will take occupy the upper floors, equating to 32,500 sq ft of space. The 59 proposed flats break down to 27 one-bedroom apartments and 32 two-bedroom ones.
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. If approved, a review mechanism would be in place to reassess viability upon completion.
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. However, there is provision for 74 bicycles to be stored, including 66 internal cycle storage spaces.
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.
The Greenland Street project from Davos rises to 13 storeys. Credit: via Merrion Strategy
Land bounded by Greenland Street, St James Street, and New Bird Street
- Application reference: 25F/1191
Situated by the future Liverpool Baltic Station, Davos’s second application coming before the committee calls for the building of 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 the 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.
Residential amenities include a 3,300 sq ft internal courtyard and a 3,800 sq ft roof terrace on the 11th floor. There are also proposals for a 870 sq ft gym on the first floor and an 870 sq ft coworking area on the second.
Like the project above, there would be no car parking. There is provision for 199 cycle spaces though for residences, and two for commercial occupiers.
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.
Westchurch Homes’s plans are for a fully affordable residential project. Credit; via planning documents
Land bound by Vauxhall Road, Eldonian Way, Leeds-Liverpool Canal
- Application reference: 25F/2526
Westchurch Homes is looking to build a fully affordable housing development on land formerly occupied by the Elaine Norris Centre.
Its proposals, devised by MCK Architects, feature 13 one-bedroom cottage apartments and seven with two bedrooms. There would also 47 houses: two three-bedroom residences, 44 three-bedroom homes, and one four-bedroom property.
The site was the subject of a previous application from Kersh Worral for 68 homes, which won an appeal in 2023 but was never advanced.
Pegasus is the planner for the project, while Tim Claxton Property led viability appraisals. These put the construction costs at around £15m for the project.
In addition to MCK, Pegasus, and Tim Claxton, the project team includes Highstone Group, Coopers, Redmore Environmental, E3P, CBO Transport, and Collington Winter.
Where would Liverpool be without Davos? All credit to those lads – can’t knock their commitment to the city.
By Birket Boy
The Blundell Street Scheme is a handsome scheme (could have been taller but still…)
The Greenland one is a bit meh but better than average for Liverpool. All in all, good news and hopefully they’ll get built in the near future (following a year of BSR uncertainty.)
By Mike
With it’s walkable location, new train station, and no parking policies, the Baltic Triangle needs to be made into a low traffic neighbourhood so drivers stop using it as a shortcut between Parliament Street and the Strand. The two drive-thrus of McDonald’s and KFC at the bottom of Blundell Street don’t help either, and are more out-of-town retail than urban core.
By Anonymous
Fingers crossed then that all three are approved, as we need some more residential activity in the Baltic Triangle, by the way we need some news on the Baltic Station from our Mayor who is keeping very quiet.
As regards the Westchurch scheme on Vauxhall Rd, it’s good to see something being proposed but those designs look a bit bland.
By Anonymous
Prediction – Liberals / Lib Dems will bring along a concerned ‘member of the public’ (one of their local candidates) to object to these schemes. What will ensue will be a list of hyperbolic rhetoric about dark dingey slums and nowhere to park, followed by a motion to refuse the application. The motion will fail because they don’t have the votes. The Chair will then put forward a motion to approve in accordance with officer recommendation. The vote will be split along party lines, with Labour securing approval with the most votes.
By Anonymous
Could it be… this is more good news for Liverpool?! All three schemes look well considered and appropriate for the areas they are in. Fingers crossed this is all part of a new wave of much needed city centre construction…
By Anonymous
@Anonymous 1:37 pm
Couldn’t agree more, I live in the area and feel disappointed that there isn’t more being done to make it a LTN. As you say, McDonalds/KFC drive thru feel out of place for the area. I remember seeing propositions a few years ago with some concept drawings for how it might look as an LTN but don’t know where it’s at now.
By Anonymous
Agree that the Baltic should have many more traffic calming measures, but there’s currently so many industrial businesses there that it’d be somewhat difficult to implement.
I welcome the developments, and the designs aren’t awful, but both the Greenland and Canalside developments should be a bit taller.
By Anonymous
Low Traffic Neighbourhoods can’t be everywhere as they are killing businesses and footfall.
By Anonymous
Simply untrue re LTNs. In the areas they’ve been rolled out over the last five years, there’s a mountain of data to show that they’ve increased revenue for businesses, have attracted more people into the areas, and encouraged kids to play outside more/walk to school. All net benefits. Of course the tabloid press will print lies about them because they are paid to do so by Big Oil. But if you visit any LTN, you’ll notice how safe, vibrant, and happy they feel compared to Car Infested suburbs
By Anonymous
And all without a penny of grant funding
By Anonymous