Liverpool City Council is set to transform a former, 28 acre, landfill site into a green community, which could accommodate almost 1,500 eco-friendly homes
A report to the city council’s cabinet on 6 December will outline a programme of activity which could lead to the building of almost 1,500 eco-friendly homes along with prime waterfront land on the southern shoreline of the River Mersey.
The former landfill site once formed part of the International Garden Festival celebrations in 1984.
The report identifies four major stepping stones for a regeneration of the landfill site:
- Submit planning application for remediation of the Development Zone in December 2019
- Accept grant funding from Homes England
- Apply for funding from Liverpool City Region Combined Authority to fund remediation and infrastructure works
- Negotiate and complete legal agreements with IMGF Developments Ltd, to pave the way for a residential planning application for 1,500 homes by Summer 2020.
Liverpool council’s intention is to facilitate site remediation and ground infrastructure works and then sell the land for the delivery of new homes to create the green community, which would include an extended parkland and an upgrade to the adjacent Festival Gardens.
IMGF Developments Ltd are producing a full residential masterplan and will work closely with the city council on a consultation programme with the neighbouring communities.
The former landfill site has received a £9.9m boost from Homes England which will start the essential remediation work on the site. Depending on planning permissions, the first homes could be available by 2022.
Arup has been appointed by Liverpool City Council for the remediation planning application, which will involve an excavation, processing and reuse strategy of the top 4-6 metre layer of material across the Development Zone. This will provide an industry-tested method to create a platform for future residential development.
Liverpool City Region Combined Authority has agreed to contribute up to £150,000 towards the pre-remediation material processing trial. This is also a pre-requisite of the Environment Agency, so that the site qualifies as a pilot project to demonstrate an innovative approach to waste processing and protecting groundwater.
Joe Anderson, Mayor of Liverpool, said: “The derelict site situated to the west of Festival Gardens presents a huge opportunity to create a new community that would be truly transformational for housing in Liverpool, generating millions of pounds every year in council tax revenue.
“A huge amount of work has gone into understanding how this former landfill site and barren wasteland can be transformed and we are now at a very exciting stage of asking for approval to prepare the site in readiness for what could be one of the UK’s best eco-friendly housing developments.”
Steve Rotheram, metro mayor of the Liverpool City Region, commented: “If we are to respond to the national housing crisis, we desperately need to build new homes and utilising previously-developed, brownfield sites such as this is not only the most environmentally sustainable approach but will also help us protect vital green spaces.”
Steve Parry of IMGF Developments Ltd, added: “We are looking to transform what is currently a brownfield, former municipal tip into one of the greenest communities in the north, incorporating newly created parkland that will expand the existing Festival Gardens.”
The Liverpool Festival Gardens site, which Liverpool City Council purchased in 2015, is split into three distinct zones:
- Development Zone – 28 acres incorporating the former ‘Pleasure Island’ dome, plaza, and waterfront bund
- The Gardens – 25 acres of Oriental Gardens set around a sizeable landscaped mound with large surface car park remaining from Festival Gardens
- Southern Grasslands – 37 acres of former Festival Gardens land that has self-seeded.
