Everton Park to be transferred to Land Trust
Liverpool City Council plans to redevelop Everton Park into a major visitor destination are to move to the next stage, as the Council's Cabinet prepares to vote on whether to hand the park over to independent land management charity The Land Trust.
The council has been working with a range of different organisations in the area over the last two years, including the Friends of Everton Park, Liverpool Biennial and Liverpool Vision, to draw up proposals for the park.
The plans include a Sky Pier visitor centre, gallery event space and café with views across the city and the River Mersey. A series of walks known as the Five Pathways will be created focused around the themes of food, art, lookout, activity and history.
On Friday 16 May, the Cabinet is being asked to endorse proposals to hand the park over to The Land Trust on a long term lease. The charity will manage and maintain the park on a long term basis and bid for external funds to carry out improvements.
The council is also being asked to approve the phased development of land around the periphery of the park for housing over the next 10 years, with the receipts ring fenced and used as an endowment to fund future management and maintenance. The plans for the housing will emerge at a later date but are understood to be eco-friendly homes.
In March 2013 Broadway Malyan won the design brief for the Park.
Mayor Joe Anderson said: "This is a visionary and exciting scheme which will transform Everton Park into a must visit destination in Liverpool.
"This is a project which has been led by the local community in partnership with the city council and other organisations.
"It is their passion and ideas have resulted in a set of ambitious but wholly achievable proposals which we are committed to helping deliver."
European Regional Development Fund cash has been secured to cover almost half of the £2m construction costs of the Sky Pier, with further bids being made to minimise the cost to the council.
A submission will be made to the Heritage Lottery Fund's new Parks for People programme later this year to help pay for the restoration of the park.
