Laing O'Rourke is the main contractor for the scheme. Credit: via planning documents

Govt asks for more time to consider £500m Everton stadium

Whitehall’s decision on whether to call-in proposals for a 53,000-capacity stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock has been delayed. 

The Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government has informed Everton FC and Liverpool City Council that the process will take longer than initially expected.

The city council granted the club consent for the £500m project last month but work cannot start on site until housing secretary Robert Jenrick signs off the plans. 

According to planning legislation, the Government has 21 days to rule on whether to call in a project following approval by a local authority. In the case of Everton’s stadium proposals, this three-week period has now elapsed. 

So the MHCLG has issued an Article 31 directive, which affords the department more time to consider an application. 

The decision to extend the period of consideration “in no way indicates what the eventual decision on call-in will be”, the department said in a statement. 

Conservation body Historic England objected to the scheme, claiming it would cause “substantial harm” to the site, which is located within Liverpool’s Unesco World Heritage site. 

A spokesperson for Liverpool City Council said: “Liverpool City Council has been informed by MHCLG that the Secretary of State has requested more time to consider the resolution to approve Everton Football Club’s planning application to build a new stadium at Bramley Moore Dock.

“This instruction has been accepted in accordance with national planning law.” 

Everton FC has been contacted for comment. 

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North Liverpool really needs this development. Historic England have a lot to answer for if this gets declined. How this plan would cause ‘Substantial harm’ is beyond me. The dockland is derelict and an eyesore. The damage has already been done from years of neglect. If Everton Stadium gets built, it will bring massive investment, there will be more developed areas, new businesses, homes and it will add to Liverpool’s waterfront look. I believe from LCC, that members of Historic England don’t even live in Liverpool or have never visited so why is our city being controlled by strangers who don’t know the place?

It’s also time for Liverpool to move on (especially from its 80’s saga). While the history of the docks is fascinating (I absolutely love our history) it’s not there anymore and we are hooked on a era that has been destroyed many years ago by the governments lack of investment and this has caused us to stay stuck in the past instead of looking ahead of what we can thrive to be. We have a waterfront here that could go up against the likes of New York and Sydney yet we’re continually being push to the back by strangers who don’t believe that Liverpool can achieve great things. Lets move on and get on with it guys. Liverpool is a great city but it can be better.

By David

Get it built!

By Disgruntled Goat

As someone based in london who designs godawful looking ‘works of art’ this stadium deserves to be built. My opinion isnt really relevant as im based in london and this is a liverpool issue but i will give my opinion anyway

By fickarchitect

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