St Helens ringfences £10m for land acquisitions

Peel L&P’s proposed multi-modal terminal on the banks of the Manchester Ship Canal has been included in Liverpool City Region’s bid for ‘freeport’ status, despite it being in Greater Manchester.

The 317-bed student accommodation scheme on Liverpool's Devon Street, which was owned by a special purpose vehicle of the same name, has fallen into administration and consultancy Colliers International has been hired to value the property for sale. 

A pedestrian bridge, relocation of the International Slavery Museum, repurposing empty dock buildings and addressing underused dry docks between Royal Albert Dock and Pier Head are all proposed in a competition by National Museums Liverpool.

LPA receiver David Currie & Co is seeking cash offers for the stalled development, a 306-bedroom hotel in Liverpool’s Baltic Triangle. 

A formal application will be made by the combined authority to reinstate the Port of Liverpool’s freeport status despite opposition from Sefton Council on environmental and social grounds.

The city’s ability to root out problematic developments funded by fractional sales has been bolstered by measures such as a draft code of practice for council officials and a new approvals process for the sale of any council-owned land, according to a report.

Post-Covid recovery in the region’s two biggest cities will be driven by Manchester’s economic expansion over the past five years and buoyant build-to-rent sector, and Liverpool’s busy port and associated industries, as well as momentum in life sciences, Avison Young said.

The financial giant's merchant banking division, working with operating partner Pitmore, has acquired a 918-home portfolio of North West rented houses from Gatehouse Bank.