Speke Garston Development Company - Retail Development - Liverpool, Speke

Date: 30 May 2002

Plans for a new district shopping centre in Speke, South Liverpool, have taken an important step forward. The centre – which includes a 7,618 sq m (82,000 sq ft) supermarket and 6,317 sq m (68,000 sq ft) of other units - will be accessed via a new junction from Speke Boulevard.

Supermarket giant Morrisons has been appointed as the preferred developer for the supermarket that will form the largest part of the new scheme.

Up to 350 jobs could be created by the £15-million project which also includes smaller retail units and a new petrol station.

Liverpool City Council has been working for five years with Speke Garston Development Company and Speke Garston Partnership to improve retail provision on the Speke Estate.

The decision was taken to relocate the district centre to a site on Speke Boulevard in order to attract high-quality retailers and improve the shopping environment for local residents.

The 16-acre site that has been chosen includes the northern section of Speke Park and the site of 72 flats on Northern Road, Penketh Green and Eastham Green.

Liverpool City Council has an option to acquire the flats from South Liverpool Housing.

The site overlooks the new £25-million Forward Learning Centre in Speke which will provide local people with a new secondary school, library, community centre and childcare facility.

Most of the existing shopping centre will be demolished to create additional sports pitches for the Forward Learning Centre.

The small number of remaining retail units on South Parade will be refurbished to provide a neighbourhood shopping facility.

If the scheme gains the necessary planning consent work could start on site as early as May next year.

Speke Garston Development Company Chief Executive Bob Lane, commented :
“ The new district centre is the latest in a string of major developments that have transformed Speke Garston in recent years.

“ The centre will bring much-improved shopping facilities to the area and create a significant number of new jobs for local people.”

David Wilson, Chair Speke Garston Partnership, added: “This shows how far we have come in Speke Garston that established names like Morrisons are keen to come and invest here and bring new jobs and opportunities to the area.”

Councillor Peter Millea, Liverpool City Council Executive Member for Regeneration, added: “We always believed that the development of the new Parklands Forward Learning Centre would act as a major catalyst for the regeneration of the centre of Speke. Morrisons are a very welcome addition to our overall strategy which will provide on-the-spot high quality shopping for Speke residents and also gives us a great opportunity to resolve a number of transport issues in the area.”

Chris Evenson, Development Director for Morrisons, said: “We are delighted to have the opportunity to be a part of this important and exciting regeneration project in Speke. We have developed a number of district centres throughout the country which we continue to own and manage and are confident that our proposals for this site will be a welcome addition to shopping facilities in the area.”

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