At the global MIPIM property expo in Cannes Liverpool city region Mayor Steve Rotheram offers more details on the establishment of a new Merseyside Development Corporation that he says will inspire ‘dramatic renaissance’. Tony McDonough reports
Liverpool city region Mayor Steve Rotheram has told an audience in the South of France that the proposed Merseyside Development Corporation (MDC) will inspire “one of the UK’s most dramatic renaissance stories of the 21st century”.
First revealed in early December, the MDC will look to accelerate billions of pounds of new development across 174 hectares of land close to Liverpool waterfront. This would include both residential and commercial schemes.
It is similar to the Merseyside Development Corporation established by Tory ‘Minister for Merseyside’ Lord Heseltine in 1981 following the Toxteth riots. It led to projects such as the renaissance of the Royal Albert Dock.
At the global MIPIM property expo in Cannes, Mr Rotheram unveiled the next steps for the formation of the MDC which will start with the devising of a full business vase.
He revealed that Liverpool City Region Combined Authority, with Liverpool City Council, is set to launch a statutory public consultation by the summer.
Subject to approval, the MDC will build on momentum generated by Everton FC’s new Hill Dickinson Stadium at Liverpool Waters as it seeks to convert 174 hectares of brownfield land into a dynamic extension of Liverpool city centre, with 5m sq ft of new commercial space and 17,700 new homes.
“For far too long, vast swathes of the city’s historic docklands have been left to rot and the impact on North Liverpool and the communities surrounding it is clear to see,” he told an audience of potential investors.
“Now with the arrival of Everton’s new stadium and exciting plans from developers such as Peel Waters and Beetham Davos coming out the ground, the timing to create such a body has never been better.”
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The forthcoming statutory six-week consultation will give residents, businesses and stakeholders the opportunity to comment on the scope and function of the MDC.
Once completed, the results of the consultation will inform the full business case, which will set out the financial, economic, commercial and governance reasons for its establishment.
It will then be sent to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, for consideration by Government.