Located at Edge Lane, the park opened a year ago and currently has around 92,000 sq ft of retail and leisure space let to retailers including M&S Food Hall and River Island. Tony McDonough reports
One year after Liverpool Shopping Park opened to the public owner Derwent Group has announced a £30m extension of the site, adding another 145,000 sq ft of retail and leisure space.
Plans for the Edge Lane site include a leisure block comprising a six-screen cinema, a new Hollywood Bowl, as well as a gym and five restaurant units on the ground floor. A separate building will accommodate a 60,000 sq ft anchor retail store and a further 16 smaller retail units.
The extension is expected to see the creation of more than 800 jobs and will be another step towards making it the biggest retail park in the UK.
There is currently around 92,000 sq ft of retail and leisure space and the aim is to eventually create more than 700,000 sq ft of space. Current tenants include M&S Food Hall, River Island, Superdrug, TK Maxx and JD Sports.
Hugo Clark, group property managing director at Derwent Group, said: “Sharing our plans with the city’s planners today is an important demonstration of confidence in the location and underlines the success of Liverpool Shopping Park since opening.
“It’s a bold scheme that, in light of the rapidly evolving retail market, has been designed carefully over the last year to meet the changing needs of operators and shoppers.
“While this has meant a slight delay in bringing this phase forward for development, we are confident we have a fantastic scheme that will provide a strong retail and leisure offer that we know the local community has been waiting for.
“The addition of a large flagship anchor store and a number of smaller units will enhance our growing reputation as a destination shopping park and provides a wider range of opportunities for retailers.”
Construction is expected to start in summer 2019 and is scheduled to open to the public in autumn 2020. McMullen Wilson and CSP are the letting agents. AEW are the architects.
The Derwent Group is part of the Albert Gubay Charitable Foundation and operates in the retail, leisure, industrial and commercial sectors. It has pledged that every £100 its tenants pay in rent, £42 will go directly to good causes.