Councillors in Liverpool will next week discuss proposals for a £5m upgrade of streets surrounding Liverpool FC’s Anfield stadium. Tony McDonough reports
Streets around Liverpool FC’s Anfield stadium will be upgraded in a plan being discussed by city councillors next week.
To create what it claims will be a “greener and safer experience” for residents and visitors, the authority wants to spend £5m on an upgrade of Walton Breck Road and a number of connecting streets.
And the council has also set out a plan for Anfield Square – which sits in the shadow of the stadium. Discussions are currently taking place with Liverpool FC and other prospective local operators to help shape the long-term future of the brownfield site.
A report going before the city’s cabinet on October 8 also highlights plans for a number of key priority sites, across Anfield, including Hodder Street and former Four Oaks school site, the southern side of Walton Breck Road and Oakfield Road, and Kemp Avenue.
They have been identified for potential residential and retail development. These schemes represent the latest phase in a £300m investment programme in the Anfield area, which first began in 2014.
Over the past decade this has led to the creation of more than 600 new and 500 refurbished homes, a revitalised Stanley Park, environmental street works and upgrades to the stadium itself as well as the recent Stanley Park market.
For the new high street scheme, which was subject to public consultation earlier in the year, the council is working in partnership with AECOM whose brief has been to design a visually more appealing and healthier public street scene.
It is recommended that AECOM enter a detailed design phase for the programme of works, with a view that the highway elements begin in 2025.
Focus will be on highway and public realm upgrades along Walton Breck Road, Oakfield Road, Pulford Street, Back Rockfield Road and Gilman Street, such as new improved carriageways and crossings.
There will also be new on-street and resident parking bays with a focus on rationalising car parking, bus stops and taxi ranks. The aim of the scheme will be to improve walking routes, create wider footpaths and add new landscaping and public realm features.
A key proposal is a suggested reduction in the speed limit on Walton Breck Road from 30mph to 20mph, between the junctions of Blessington Road and Kemp Avenue, to improve safety for pedestrians.
There’s an additional proposal to close access to Back Rockfield Road from Pulford Street, including a safe area for vehicles to turn around.
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Cllr Dan Barrington, Cabinet Member for Transport and Connectivity, said: “The redevelopment of the Anfield community has been more than a decade in the making and we’re now entering a key phase to improve the heart of it.
“Creating a healthier, greener, safer and more visually appealing high street will have a major impact on the day-to-day quality of life of our residents. This will set the foundation for further development to come to the housing and retail offer in the area.”