PLANNING | Liverpool consents more than 900 city homes

Applications for residential schemes across Liverpool have been approved at the city council’s planning committee, including apartments targeted at key workers and students, alongside two additional hotels.

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Great George Street

Great George Street CGI Dec 2019 2

An application for seven buildings, ranging in height from two-storeys to 19-storeys, was approved for the 8.4-acre site at Great George Street, previously set to be home to the stalled New Chinatown scheme.

The architect for the scheme is Brock Carmichael, with Arup advising on planning.

Overall, the consented scheme included:

  • Seven buildings  of between two and 18 storeys, made up of 466 apartments and 37 townhouses
  • 130,000 sq ft of commercial space
  • 144 bedroom hotel
  • 45,000 sq ft of offices with parking and landscaping
  • 400 basement car parking spacesn
  • 300 cycling spaces

The site has a long and unsuccessful planning history. Prior to the recession, Urban Splash submitted an application for 740 residential units, but the scheme was never proceeded due to the collapse of the residential market at the time.

North Point Global submitted another application for the site in 2015 for New Chinatown, which was heavily marketed to overseas investors. However the project was marred with delays and questions over its viability, and in 2017 Northpoint announced it would be ceasing operations, and the project would not be progressed, leaving many buyers out of pocket.

The project was approved despite letters of objection highlighting concerns the scheme would block views of the Cathedral. In a report to the council, the planning officer defended the decision to recommend the project for approval, stating: “We wish to allow the silhouette of the cathedral to continue to dominate the city. For all applications in large scale developments, the development level falls below the shoulder of the cathedral. In this particular instance the overall height of the shoulder of the cathedral stands at 85.3m and the height of this development 82.7m.”


Falkner Street

FCH Falkner Street Liverpool Dec 2019

Elliot Group’s application for two buildings, one six-storey and one five-storey, on Falkner Street was granted planning permission.

The application, under the name Falkner Street Developments, would see the demolition of the former Merseyside probation centre and the former St Stephens Church.

The scheme will deliver 106 key worker homes and 182 student bedrooms across two new residential blocks

The developer purchased the site at an auction hosted by Pugh & Co.

The scheme is designed by Falconer Chester Hall and Zerum advised on planning.


Park Lane

FCH Park Lane Dec 2019

Elliot Group in a joint venture with Valorem Investment Partners also received consent for two buildings, at nine and 16-storeys at Park Lane, near to Heap’s Rice Mill.

The 0.84-acre site is used as a car park. Block A, which would sit off the corner of Park Lane and Liver Street, would house 90 apartments. Block B, which would be on the corner of Pownall Street and Park Lane would be a 260-bedroom hotel.

According to Elliot Group managing director Elliot Lawless, an announcement on a hotel operator is imminent.

Falconer Chester Hall designed the scheme and Zerum is the planner.


Gildart Street

Gildart Street

At the same committee, a third scheme designed by Falconer Chester Hall also secured planning permission, a student accommodation block on Gildart Street, within the Fabric District of Liverpool.

The eight-storey, 53-bedroom student accommodation will be made up of 48 cluster bedrooms and 5 studios.

The scheme has been designed for Liverpool developer Gildart Street.

The structural engineers is Clancy Consultants. The planner is Zerum, and SCP is the highway consultant, with Rachel Hacking providing the site ecology study.


Springfield ParkSpringfield Park Cullinan Studio Dec 2019

The final approved project would see the phased redevelopment and expansion of Springfield Park, next to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital.

The park proposals would reach 23 acres, and would include hard and soft landscaping, planting and trees, two junior sports pitches, table tennis, 1km running route, and an outdoor multi-gym.

The application site also has potential for a café and a farm, but these are not part of this application.

Alder Hey Hospital is the developer, and the scheme was designed by Cullinan Studio, which is also delivering a £20m community cluster for the hospital.

Your Comments

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LCC have just granted Tomlinson and McInnes planning on the George St-Chinatown site…they haven’t learned or listened.

By Mike

I hope the Park Lane approval will encourage Elliot to crack on with the Heap’s Mill.

By Liverpolitan

Just what’s needed, more flats

By Tom

Mike, nothing will happen especially whilst the SFO investigates them

By Mikes mate

Great to see derelict areas of the City getting a new lease of life

By Anon

City centre will become a series of ghettos with all of these flats/apartments. Surely got to near if not already at saturation point with flats in this city. What about mixed residential and encourage areas for families and elderly. Who’s in charge of city planning long term? Or just short-term short sightedness.? It is true every new home built the council gets revenue of 6 times the council rate in the first year from central government?

By Jacqui

When are u going to start building homes for the homeless?? Oh that’s right, there’s no money in that is there

By Cath

SFO you say “Mikes mate”??
That would yield some interesting results. Shame for the city again.

By Mike

Concerned no plans for the listed but deteriorating heaps rice mill ……the longer its left with gaping holes in the roof and weeds/ bushs growing from the brickwork the more the argument may once again be made for demolition of this important building

By Anonymous

The planning permission on Gt George Street should not have been given for the high rise building. The planning Committee refuse to listen to anyone in this city. It is all wrong

By Chris L.

Build them tall where not a village

By Anonymous

Selling Liverpool by the pound.

By John Smith

Not half some twaddle on here. No, we shouldn’t impact sightlines of the cathedral, which the Gt George plans seem to wholly address reading through the planning docs? I do agree whether they actually come to fruition with spades in the ground is another question. As for ‘building more flats’, its a city, a growing one at that, they’re not going to pop some bungalows on city centre land are they. I’m sure developers don’t just build them for fun, the demand is clearly there for a return on investment. The two Elliot schemes look good and hopefully the Park Lane approval will be the spur for Heaps Rice Mill conversion.

By L17

I think the plans for Heaps Rice Mill were approved a while ago. The onus is on Elliot but the Council should use its leverage to gain swifter action, as you are right about the deterioration. Elliot has gained approval for massive hugely profitable developments; he needs to put some money back into the Rice Mill. He got away with demolishing a lovely old warehouse on the edge of his Wolstenholme Square development to build at least three times higher. This must not happen again.

By Liverpolitan

Love these developments , nothing wrong with them

By Anonymous

What with the little building in the Middle of George Street development? Completely out of context with the rest of the development, This makes me so angry. Knock it down!

By Mikes mates mate

see the usual negative suspects have crawled out of the floorboards

By Anonymous

How is Elliot getting new developments approved when he has defaulted on the payments to his investors on all his previous developments?

By Jimmy

Stalinist! (@Mike’s m’s m). The building in the middle separates the two towers neatly. It might clash a bit in style but it’s one of the few buildings left this end of Great George’s Street giving a little hint at the history of the area. Remove everything and you erase the past and diminish an area culturally.

By Liverpolitan

@Liverpolitan, to be fair to Elliot Group they only bought the scheme in June and they’ve already come forward with a detailed planning application. Word on the street is that they have funders and end-users lined up, too. And didn’t we read elsewhere recently that they’ve been doing remedial works on the mill building and that this would be the final piece in the jigsaw?

By Sceptical

Apologies to Elliot if I’m doing them an injustice. Will be great to see them cracking on with this and it seems an excellent scheme!

By Liverpolitan

Funny. Most of the negative comments seem to be from ‘outsiders’. Let’s get it done. City is looking better by the day.

By George

Strange how someone can be classed as an outsider for having an opinion.
But yeah bring on the towers…

By Tim

It would be for the best that the great George Street development is sold to a proper developer with a decent track record. The people who own it currently are wholly unsuitable. Separately, bashing Elliot seems unjustified when he is bringing schemes to fruition. The company is moving away from the fractional sales model for good reason as minor glitches turn into huge dramas. The same cannot be said for Signature though.

By Alan

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