‘Urban park’ at Liverpool city centre office scheme will need public sector support

Pall Mall public realm project being separated from wider scheme

Delivery of an urban park in the middle of Liverpool’s first Grade A office building scheme for more than 15 years requires public-sector intervention to ensure it can be brought to life.

Almost £2.5m of developer cash from projects across the city centre is to be repurposed to help create a public realm as part of proposals for a new eight storey office development at Pall Mall.

A total of £2.47m of section 106 (S106) cash – derived from development projects – will be used for eligible works, including The Lawns, Terraced Gardens and Bixteth Walk. The total cost of the scheme is expected to top out at £60m.

It is being separated from the wider scheme after a full business case indicated that “market conditions, abnormal costs and viability constraints require public‐sector intervention.”

As a result, the public realm will be funded via S106 which the local authority said would make the overall project easier to achieve.

The council-owned site, which lies off Bixteth Street, was remediated in 2020 but has stood dormant ever since after plans for large office buildings and a hotel stalled. There are hopes work could get underway on site during the last three months of this year, with a view to completion in 2028.

The scheme is being brought forward by Kier Property Developments Ltd with the phase one green space open to the public but privately owned. Pall Mall is a long‐standing strategic regeneration site in the city’s commercial business district, bounded by Pall Mall, Bixteth Street and Exchange Station.

The wider masterplan will deliver up to 400,000 sq. ft of Grade A office space, hotel and supporting uses centred around new green public space.

Delivery is identified as a priority within the council’s Strategic Futures Programme and the Liverpool City Region’s Grade A office growth agenda. It would represent the first development of its kind in Liverpool for almost two decades.

The project has progressed to full business case which has confirmed that market conditions, abnormal costs and viability constraints require public‐sector intervention. As a result, delivery of the public realm will be achieved separately, which according to city council documents makes the project easier to achieve overall.

The central gardens would be accessible 24 hours a day and maintained by a management company. A planned maintenance regime will be implemented to ensure the public realm remains safe, attractive and well‐maintained, including routine landscaping, cleaning, lighting, repairs and renewal of materials as required.

This will be funded by service charge contributions. According to the local authority, this arrangement ensures no ongoing revenue liability for Liverpool Council and preserves unrestricted public access in perpetuity.

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