Backed by a state-owned Canadian investment fund, the £50m 22-storey tower in Liverpool city centre will offer 336 apartments for rent. Tony McDonough reports
Work has started on a £50m 22-storey residential tower in Liverpool city centre that will offer 336 apartments for rent.
Developer Ridge Liverpool, a vehicle set up by national build-to-rent developer Ridgeback Group earlier this year, has appointed building firm GRAHAM as the main contractor on the scheme called Pall Mall Press. It is due for completion in October 2023.
Ridgeback acquired the the site at 30-36 Pall Mall, close to the city’s commercial district, from North Wales-based Anwyl Construction. In 2017 Anwyl secured planning consent for a £60m development called Aspire on the site. It comprised two residential blocks of 10 and 22 storeys.
It had planned to deliver the project on the site, bounded by Highfield Street, Prussia Street and Cockspur Street West, in partnership with Liverpool developer Brickland. But work never began and Anwyl sold it to Ridgeback in February 2021.
It is believed Pall Mall Press is being backed by state-owned Canadian institutional investor, the Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo), which has around £70bn of assets under management.
Designed by Falconer Chester Hall and managed by Savills, the 282,617 sq ft private rented sector (PRS) scheme will deliver a mix of studio, one, and two bedrooms apartments for rent.
It will benefit from a number of “sustainable” elements, with green roofs to recycled rainwater, solar panels, and internally, light filled areas that minimise the need for electric lighting. Alongside the residential apartments, there will be retail space and a private garden terrace.
Peter Reavey, regional director at GRAHAM, said: “Pall Mall Press is a positive addition to the city of Liverpool that will deliver much-needed PRS housing. Located in a vibrant location, we hope that the scheme will pave the way for similar development locally.”
Ridgeback Group is a UK focused property investor and operator with a Build to Rent portfolio in excess of 2,100 homes ranging from planning and in construction through to fully operational.