Signature Living Developments officially started work on the Shankly Hotel in Liverpool today, with the total development of the former council building expected to cost in excess of £20 million pounds.

Signature Living developments say the hotel and museum will create around 200 jobs and hope that it will become an international tourist attraction.

The luxury 83-bedroom, football-themed hotel will honour the legendary Liverpool FC manager Bill Shankly and is a joint venture between Signature Living and the surviving Shankly family.

As well as a hotel, the building will house a museum dedicated to the football icon, where visitors will find never-before-seen family memorabilia gathered throughout his glittering reign at Anfield. Signature Living say that the museum will represent a permanent tribute to the life of Bill Shankly and expect it to become a destination of choice for football aficionados from around the world.

A bar and a sports-themed restaurant are also planned as part of the venture, and all are scheduled to open in time for the new premiership football season in August.

The hotel will see the complete transformation of the 145,000 square ft Millennium House building on Victoria Street which was once home to Liverpool City Council.

Signature Living acquired the property from the council last week and the multi-million pound agreement includes work to renovate the Lifestyles gym on Victoria Street, which forms part of the site.

In addition to the hotel, museum, bar and restaurant, there are also plans to locate a training school on site that will support people wanting to go into the leisure and hospitality industry. Signature Living have already begun to work with local colleges and training providers.

Signature Living owner Lawrence Kenwright said:

“Signature Living is about to radically transform this landmark city centre building into a truly international hotel and tourist destination. It will be more than a luxury accommodation; this has the potential to become a tourist attraction in its own right.

“Having spent many hours with the Shankly family, I have come to realise just how amazing Bill Shankly as a manager was, there is a great story behind the legend and I believe the team at Signature Living are perfectly placed to deliver it.

“This won’t just be a hotel for fans of Liverpool football club because Bill Shankly is a name that is respected by fans of sport the world over. He is an icon in the world of football. His fantastic story will be told at the Shankly Hotel to give guests a sense of his greatest achievements.

“The Shankly Hotel development will also further regenerate a key part of Liverpool city centre and create hundreds of local jobs.”

Bill Shankly’s grandson, Chris Shankly-Carline, who is collaborating with Signature Living on the venture, outlines that it is exciting to see work starting on the project, saying:

“The Shankly family is really proud to be working with Signature Living to make the Shankly Hotel a reality. It will be the ultimate tribute to my grandfather.

“We’re hoping to create an unforgettable experience for visitors to the hotel and have identified some truly unique, unseen pieces of memorabilia from within the family collection to display. It might surprise some that it will not be all about his time at Liverpool football club, the hotel will feature his time at Carlisle United, Preston North End and even the special relationship he had with Everton.

“I know that Signature Living and their team will be working hard to looks fantastic before the grand opening on August.”

The Shankly Hotel is Signature Living’s latest high profile development. The company opened the 30 James Street Hotel last year after a stunning restoration of a building that was once home to the Titanic’s White Star Line HQ and is located at the heart of Liverpool’s Waterfront World Heritage Site.

The new development at Millennium House will also include new headquarters for the company to support their planned UK expansion.