Wirral steps in to tackle Liscard eyesore
With current leaseholder Prospect Estates unable to redevelop Dominick House, the local authority is lining up a deal to acquire the ‘70s office block and sell it to the owners of the nearby Cherry Tree Shopping Centre.
Wirral Council owns the freehold for Dominick House, which was built as a government office. Set off St Albans Road, the building has been vacant since 2018.
Prospect Estates had hoped to convert the office block into apartments, having secured a preliminary green light from Wirral Council for the scheme in 2020. However, the project never came to fruition. Prospect Estates put forward an application demolish the property in June.
Prospect Estates has another 43 left on the 99-year leasehold of the property, however that time is insufficient to support redevelopment, according to a report going before Wirral Council’s economy, regeneration, and housing committee on 14 September.
The developer has already tried to dispose of the property, putting it up for auction last year. A buyer was found, but they failed to meet the test for assignment within the lease and so the deal fell through.
Under the proposal before Wirral Council, the local authority would purchase the leasehold from Prospect Estates using money from the Local Regeneration Fund.
The council would then sell the freehold and leasehold to the owners of Cherry Tree Shopping Centre in a back-to-back deal, thereby absolving the council of having to insure the building, cover maintenance, or provide security for the property during an interim period.
Cherry Tree Shopping Centre’s owners are expected to demolish the site, however, under the terms of the agreement they would not be obliged to do so as the council will forsake any control on the future of the site by selling the freehold.
However, the report states that the shopping centre owners have a vested interest in addressing the issue of the vacant building.
“They believe obtaining the site would enable them to remove a blight and generate opportunities for them, which in turn create opportunities to increase the vitality of the centre of Liscard overall,” the report reads.
“The likely outcome would be to see the building demolished, and the land incorporated into the shopping centre.”
By selling the freehold, Wirral Council would forsake the £16,700 it earns each year through the lease rental income.
Details, including the cost of the leasehold acquisition and the capital receipts generated from the leasehold and freehold sale, were not disclosed in the public papers for the meeting next week.
