Tributes paid to Rod Holmes

Former colleagues of the man who spearheaded Liverpool ONE’s delivery have been united in saluting “a brilliant guy who empowered a city,” following his death last week.

He was 82. Glenbrook director and ex-Grosvenor director Guy Butler told Place North West that “without Rod, there would be no Liverpool ONE. An incredible man.”

Born in Yorkshire, Holmes took charge of Liverpool ONE – known in its early days as the Paradise Project – from its inception in 1999, leading it through a public inquiry and assembling a delivery team that ultimately saw the 42-acre, £1bn project through to opening in 2008.

Thirty new buildings were delivered, using 26 architects.

Following that achievement, he chaired the inward investment-focused Mersey Partnership, steering it through to merger with the Liverpool City Region LEP in 2021, at a time when the coalition government was turning local and regional governance on its head.

Butler expanded on his thoughts in a Linkedin tribute: “Rod was many things to me — a friend, mentor, leader and, at times, a father figure. There is no doubt I would not be who I am today without him.

“He built and inspired a large team whose shared passion reflected his own belief in the project. Rod had a rare ability to balance the delivery of a new city centre with genuine care for the people around him, creating not just a successful development, but a group of colleagues united by purpose and pride in what they achieved together.

“His influence lives on not only in Liverpool ONE, but in the many people whose careers and lives he helped shape.”

Chris Bliss, who served as estate director once the retail and leisure destination was up and running, later going on to form Momentum Group, was brought into the team by Holmes as Grosvenor Estates worked to get the project up and running in 2003.

He told Place: “Rod was the driving force of the project, he harnessed us as a team to make sure we got it over the line. There are not many people with the talent to motivate and manage a team of that size. This is very, very sad news and my thoughts are with Rod’s family.

“There aren’t many people you can say genuinely changed your life, but Rod was one. He selected me to come from down south to join the Liverpool team. He encouraged us to be bold, to push the boundaries and deliver what we delivered.

“Momentum wouldn’t have been formed without that background, and there are probably a few people with similar stories. On a personal level, he listened, he gave advice, he challenged, and he was also fun to be around.”

Mark Davies and Kevin Horton co-founded Liverpool architecture firm K2 after working together at project masterplanner BDP on Liverpool ONE.

Davies told Place: “When we started working on Liverpool ONE, I realised quickly Rod was one of very few people I’d ever met who could bridge divides, relating to the local Scousers and institutional investors alike, and making everybody feel important and involved. A lot of people could learn from Rod how to inspire a team and create a legacy.

“Working for Rod on Liverpool ONE was definitely an inspiration for us in setting up K2, because it gave us a vision of what we wanted to be.

“Like Jurgen Klopp would later, he changed the city forever. This is the city my kids know, and their view of Liverpool is a lot different to how people my age saw it when we were kids. Rod empowered a city – a brilliant guy.”

Horton added: “Rod was a brilliant and inspiring gentleman who helped define my career working on Liverpool ONE. He always took time to listen and acknowledge and support my ideas and opinions even when they went against the grain. Liverpool wouldn’t be the place it is today without his insight and clarity of vision.”