Albert Dock
Liverpool City Centre is in creative ferment. Everywhere you turn there are construction sites and road blocks, steel fences and dust clouds, with the level of hard-hat-clad workers almost outnumbering pedestrians.
This frenzy of rebuilding, redeveloping, and redesigning should result in a brand-new, rather spectacular, Liverpool City Centre , most of which will be ready to be revealed in time for next year’s cultural festivities.
Ambitious plans include a vast waterfront arena; a brand new city centre park; improved traffic and tourist facilities; an overhaul of the retail district; and hundreds of state-of-the-art apartments.
City Living On The Rise
Converted warehouse apartments
The massive projects current underway complement earlier developments. Since the regeneration of the waterfront began in the early 90s, Liverpool City Centre has seen a steady increase in the number of city dwellers, which now stands at around 14,000 people.
Residents are generally made up of three groups: young professionals; students; and empty nesters (older couples whose kids have left home).
While there is a cross-over regarding where these groups choose to live, the generalisation is that students live close to the university area in the north-east part of town, young professionals tend to live next to shops, bars and restaurants, and older people prefer the waterside properties.
"Feverish Activity"
Falkner Terrace
To get some sense of the scale of the development, take a look at the Liverpool Vision website – this is the company charged with overseeing the regeneration of seven key areas in the city centre (discussed in detail below).
2006, they say, was another year of "feverish activity" by developers, who added over 1,400 new units to the Liverpool City Centre housing market. This trend is set to continue into 2007 with around 1,800 units due to be completed this year.
New apartment blocks (one to two bedroom apartments predominate) and converted historic buildings make up the bulk of the properties, but the affluence of the early 19th century is still apparent in the elegant Georgian terraces which once housed the wealthiest merchants of the day.
The Market
City centre offices and apartments
Boosted by a buoyant property market, the price of an apartment in the centre of town soared by a whopping 75 per cent between 2000 and 2006 but last year things clamed down (prices dipped by two per cent).
A slight excess in supply over demand has created a buyer’s market, says Liverpool Vision, and with prices stabilising the number of speculators buying off plan and selling on has dwindled.
That said, the investment market for one and two bed units remains strong and investors are still a force to be reckoned with.
As Liverpool City Centre reinvents itself, and the schemes currently under construction reach completion, living in this part of town is bound to become even more attractive – and that can only be positive for the housing market.
Here is a look at the seven main city centre districts and at some of the residential options they offer.
PROPERTY IN LIVERPOOL CITY CENTRE
Where is it? As the name suggest, the area by the legendary Mersey.
What’s there? A mixture of housing, office space, hotel accommodation and tourist attractions.
There is a lot of building work underway at the moment preparing for next year’s City of Culture status, including the rather large Liverpool Arena and Conference Centre (ACC) which is adjacent to Albert Dock.
This latter is the number one tourist destination in Liverpool and it’s a great place to wander around both day and night.
Beatles fans will be in their element with a guided tour called The Beatles Story; Richard and Judy devotees can marvel at the Granada TV studios from where This Morning was originally broadcast; and culture vultures will enjoy the Liverpool Maritime Museum, Tate Liverpool, and the Museum of Liverpool Life.
Alternatively, there are some excellent shops, bars and restaurants centred around the internal waterfront, and a variety of river cruises to pick from.
City Lofts
Residential: There are some gorgeous apartments in the converted (and listed) warehouses in Albert Dock itself which are a sought-after option, and similar waterfront warehouse conversions include Waterloo Warehouse and West Quay.
There are also plenty of new-build developments stretching along the banks of the Mersey, which first started to appear in the 90s.
Construction work on further blocks doesn’t seem to have ceased ever since (eg Quebec, South Ferry and Waterloo Quays).
2. Retail District
Liverpool Wall of Fame
Where is it? Bang in the central part of Liverpool City Centre, from Victoria Street to Hanover Street.
What’s there? Unsurprisingly, shops, shops, and more shops interspersed with eating and drinking places, a few residential options, and a mecca for Beatles fans in Mathew Street.
A large part of the shopping area is pedestrianised (Church Street to Richmond Street, and the Cavern Quarter) - which is handy.
Most of the usual high street suspects are in attendance, and there are some large malls, too, such as Metquarter with its upmarket stores and St. John’s, the city’s largest indoor shopping centre.
But it’s the Cavern Quarter which will draw in the Beatles devotees, as this is the site of the rebuilt Cavern Club where the Fab Four played so frequently. There is also a Wall of Fame here celebrating all the number one singles by people from Liverpool – a world record-breaking amount.
Lots of drinking establishments in this part, too, such as the legendary - in Liverpool, anyway – Flanagan’s Apple, a large and lively, non-chain, Irish pub.
Residential: Flat conversions in some of the beautiful period buildings on and around Victoria Street are popular in this central district.
Some new-build apartments have already been completed or are under construction in this district as part of the expansive (42 acres) Liverpool One project, such as the first phase of the flagship residential development, also called Liverpool One, which deserves to be considered separately.
3. Liverpool One (formerly Paradise Street project)
Where is it? A large area covering, for the main part, Paradise Street, Hanover Street, Peter’s Lane, South John Street, Strand Street and Liver Street.
What’s there? This whole area is undergoing massive redevelopment including the creation of a new bus station and an urban park. When finished (Summer 2008), it will contain several elements: residential; leisure; retail; and business.
The entire project is being carried out by just one developer, Grosvenor, who fought off competition from nearly 30 other companies. It will cost around £920 million.
Paradise Street itself will be pedestrianised and redesigned as a boulevard-style shopping centre complete with pavement cafes to create a European ambience.
Two flagship department stores, John Lewis and Debenhams, will form commercial bookends at either end of South John Street, which will be the retail heart of the scheme.
Old, derelict buildings in Hanover Street will be redeveloped with a view to creating a homeware retail district while stores in Peter’s Lane will be designer-led.
Chavasse Park to the south is going to be recreated as a "garden in the sky" with terraces leading up from Strand Street, and an underground car park will provide an extra 2,000 parking spaces.
A further 1,000 car-parking spaces will be available at the new state-of-the-art bus station on Canning Place; the bus station and the new Urban Park will link the retail district and waterfront.
There will also be two upmarket hotels (including a Hilton) and a cinema complex at the heart of Liverpool One.
Liverpool One Park West apartments
Residential: There will be a significant number of new residential units created as part of the Paradise Street Development Area.
Many will occupy the upper levels of new commercial and leisure buildings while some will be in restored older buildings throughout the area such as those in Hanover Street at the edge of Rope Walks.
In addition, there will be residential new-builds, for example the flagship Liverpool One featuring luxury 1-3 bed apartments with 360-degree views which will take in the brand new park.
This will contain over 600 new apartments in three core buildings, and should be completed in 2009, with the first phase just recently having gone on sale.
Another part-residential, part-commercial development, Central Village, will have more than 400 apartments, a hotel, shops, bars and restaurants.
This will be located next to the Liverpool One site, bounded by Bold and Renshaw Streets, and linking to Central Station.
4. Business Quarter
Where is it? West of the Retail Centre. Encompasses Water, Castle and Exchange Streets (Live/Work district) and Pall Mall, Chapel, Old Hall, Tithebarn, Dale and High streets.
What’s there? Again, the name says it all – this district contains many offices and businesses, most of which are set in magnificent Victorian buildings constructed when the city was in its trading heyday.
Recent years have seen new office developments in the district such as City Square on Tithebarn Street, and further north around Pall Mall and Old Hall Street, with a lot of this construction still ongoing.
There are some pleasant restaurants and bars in the Business District, and lots of coffee and sandwich shops catering for workers in daytime hours.
Residential: Modern apartment developments have been constructed throughout, and some of the period buildings have been converted into luxury flats.
There are several mixed-used developments such as The Unity in Chapel Street which has two towers, one of which is primarily residential while the second consists mainly of office space with shops, bars, and restaurants at the lower level.
The Beetham Tower in Old Hall Street is an impressive 30 storey building which contains the Radisson SAS hotel and over 100 modern apartments. It will be joined later this year by the even taller Beetham West Tower on the same street.
This new tower will consist of five floors of office accommodation topped by a whopping 35 floors of residential space, and will be the tallest structure in Liverpool.
St Paul’s Square, in the same vicinity, is an ambitious mixed-use development including luxury apartments, offices, shops and restaurants set around a new public square, and the first phase of residences is due for completion this spring.
The Live/Work district (centred around Castle Street) also contains mixed-use developments both in new-builds and in conversions.
Temple Square includes the converted former Tea Warehouse (now known as Colonial Chambers and providing office space); the restyling of two Victorian warehouses into luxury apartments; construction of a modern tower containing more office space; and the demolition of two former office buildings to provide an open area.
There are also some primarily residential projects such as the upmarket apartments in the refurbished Westminster Chambers.
Ongoing building work will see further new arrivals including Eden Square off Hatton Garden (new-build and conversion into residential and commercial units).
5. Cultural Quarter
Where is it? Bounded by the Business and Reatil Districts, the Cultural Quarter begins at the junction of Victoria Street and St John’s Lane and continues in a northerly direction.
What’s there? Another literal name. This architecturally-stunning part of the city is home to a cluster of elaborate and grandiose buildings.
Culturally, there’s an excellent selection: the Walker Art Gallery; the World Museum; Central Library; the Empire Theatre; Steble Fountain & Wellington’s Column; St George’s Hall & the Cenotaph; and St John’s Gardens, a public open space with some striking statues.
Lime Street Station, Liverpool’s main train station and one end of the world’s first proper public railway system, is also in this vicinity.
It is undergoing major refurbishment and a new, adjacent apartment block is also under construction: collectively, this is the Lime Street Gateway.
Residential: A brand new commuter-friendly development of apartments next to the station is underway as part of the overhaul of the station entrance.
Also part of the Lime Street Gateway project are a one-two bed block of flats on Bridport Street, and an apartment development on Lord Nelson Street.
A proposal to build a hotel and further apartments on Skelhorne/Bolton streets was recently refused but an appeal has been submitted.
6. Rope Walks
Where is it? To the east of the Retail District, incorporating Bold Street, Duke Street and the surrounding streets.
What’s there? Rope Walks is characterised by its narrow streets, and the concentration of 19th century warehouses and merchants’ houses.
These are testimony to its period as the place where ropes were made for the sail ships of the day – hence the long, very narrow streets which were used for binding ropes.
It has been transformed in recent years in to a social and creative city centre hub, and many of its old buildings have been restored into swish apartments and offices, usually for companies with a media, communications or design slant.
Alongside the plentiful restoration/conversion work, there has been a spate of new-build developments which have been designed to be in keeping with the overall feel of the district.
This buzzing enclave boasts lots of bars, pubs, restaurants, and even nightclubs in among the labyrinth of streets, and the open Concert Square, with chain bar and club, tends to get very busy in summer months.
Rope Walks is where you’ll find FACT (a New Media Gallery and independent Picturehouse) and the Open Eye Gallery. It’s also the gateway to Liverpool’s Chinatown (mostly centred in Nelson Street) which contains Europe’s largest Chinese Arch.
And it’s unlikely that you’ll miss Penelope, a multi-coloured, vaguely spidery public sculpture which presides over Wolstenholme Square.
Renaissance apartment conversion
Residential: Apartments aimed at young professionals and student renters consisting of warehouse conversions, new-build apartments, and mixed-use residential and commercial/office/leisure developments.
Renaissance on Wood Street is a recently completed conversion with chic apartments while Urban Splash's Tea Factory on the same street has trendy apartments on its upper floors with equally fashionable café bar and restaurant below.
Campbell Square is another popular mixed-use site including apartments, offices, and bars/restaurants, as is East Village in Madison Square which has Manhattan-inspired apartments with balconies and landscaped gardens, and commercial uses, including restaurants, at the ground level.
Future residential projects planned for Rope Walks include Elysian Fields, an eight-storey apartment block on the site of a former college building in Colquitt Street, and The Foundry, part redevelopment and part new-build in Henry and Lydia Ann streets.
There are also several commercial/apartment developments planned along Duke Street which is awash with construction workers at the moment.
7. Hope Quarter
Liverpool Anglican Cathedral
Where is it? East of Rope Walks over to Grove Street and north towards Everton Brow which includes the university sector.
What’s there? This district encompasses Liverpool University and Liverpool John Moores University, the Metropolitan and Anglican cathedrals, and a collection of beautiful Georgian residences.
There are also restaurants, pubs and bars, particularly in Hope and Hartman Streets, and cultural hotspots of the area include the Philharmonic Hall, and The Unity and the Everyman theatres.
Residential: The Georgian and early Victorian terraces in and around Canning and Hope Street offer some of the most attractive housing in Liverpool city.
Once home to the most affluent residents, the addresses are still prestigious, although many of the properties are now sub-divided into flats.
The houses on Hope Street have one of the best views in the city, overlooking the magnificent Liverpool Anglican Cathedral, which is the largest Anglican cathedral in the UK.
Canning Street’s immaculate terraces with their upmarket columned doorways and smart wrought-iron balconies often star in period TV shows, and nearby streets like Falkner Street and South Bedford Terrace have further elegant townhouses.
Canning Street
The garden in Falkner Square was once for residents only but is now open to the public, and very pleasant it is too. Elsewhere in this part of town, there are lots of Victorian terraced houses, some sub-divided into flats and others intact.
Much of the Hope and Canning area is a conservation area, so there hasn’t been the same flurry of new-build development as in other parts of the city.
Closer to the universities (Myrtle Street and beyond) there is some conversion of existing buildings going on, such as the former school on Mount Pleasant Street which will be turned into modern apartments by the end of this year.
The Symphony on Myrtle Street is a beautiful apartment conversion with a modern extension on the site of the former Eye and Ear Hospital.
There are some new-builds such as The Atrium on London Road, with more apartments due to be built on this road later in the year, and nearby Moss Street is also set for some new-builds.
A few purpose-built blocks in this are tend to be student accommodation (such as on Mulberry and Catharine Streets), and the roads closest to the universities also have a high proportion of student renters, as do the streets beyond New Islington (Soho, William Henry etc).
The popular Urban Splash Collegiate development, on the site of a former school, is located in this area (Shaw Street).
LIVERPOOL: LIVING HERE
Transport
Ferry at the Mersey
Train: Lime Street is the main station for the city centre and it operates both national and local routes.
Liverpool City Centre has direct rail connections to various UK cities including London, Leeds, Manchester and Birmingham.
Locally, the Northern line connects Liverpool with Ormskirk, Kirkby, Southport and Hunts Cross while the Wirral Line runs to West Kirby, Ellesmere Port, New Brighton and Chester.
For travel further afield, Liverpool has direct rail connections to a number of UK cities including London, Birmingham, Manchester and Leeds.
There are three other city centre stations (Moorfields, James Street and Central) which operate local services.
Bus: There are two bus stations in the city centre, the former Paradise Street which is now at Canning Place, and Queen Square, which both serve local routes. National Express services leave from a bus station slightly east of the Norton Street / Islington junction.
Car: The city has good links to the national road network, through the M62, M53 and M58.
Ferry: Quite probably the most famous mode of transport in Liverpool. There is a frequent Ferry Across the Mersey service which takes just thirty minutes for a round trip.
There are also longer options such as the River Explorer Cruises and Manchester Ship Canal Cruises, and regular commuter ferries sail between Liverpool and Birkenhead / Wallasey.
Air: Liverpool’s John Lennon Airport, the UK’s fastest growing airport, is located seven miles south of the city centre (approx. 20 minutes car journey), and has many international and domestic services. There are regular bus services between the airport and the city centre.
Shopping
Liverpool City Centre has lots of shopping centres ranging from typical high street outlets to designer-orientated stores, as well as typical shopping streets. Some of the highlights include:
Cavern Walks: Designer shopping mall based around the site of the Cavern Club which is where The Beatles first ventured on stage. There is a replica of the original club, and a two-floor shopping centre featuring designer stores such as Vivienne Westwood, Jimmy Choo, Prada, and Liverpool celeb-favourite, Cricket.
In addition to the Cavern Club there is a nightclub and two food & drink establishments. The centre is located on Mathew Street, minutes away from Lime Street Railway Station.
Metquarter: A new arrival to the Liverpool shopping scene, Metquarter is hailed as the city’s answer to Bond Street, and is packed with trendy names including Diesel, Miss Sixty, Animal, Timberland and Mikey. There’s also a good selection of places to eat and drink.
Metquarter was built on the site of the former post office and its architectural style is a fusion of old and new. It is centrally located between Whitechapel and Victoria Street.
Bold Street
Church Street: Liverpool’s High Street – lots of household names including BHS, John Lewis and Marks & Spencer, New Look, Next, River Island, Gap, H&M, Topman and Topshop.
Bold Street: Very close to Church Street and has further high street brands such as Dune, Kookai, Waterstones and Karen Millen, as well as renowned Liverpool departments store, Jeff’s, which is like a local version of Harrod’s.
St John’s: This is the city’s largest shopping centre and is located right in the heart of the centre opposite Lime Street station. There are over 100 shops from well-known names to individual outlets and a large food court including McDonalds, Subway and KFC for quick snacks.
Clayton Square Shopping Centre: A good range of shops such as Game, Disney Store, Virgin Megastore and Boots, alongside some food and drink venues. There are also market stalls and an open plan art gallery.
Liverpool Farmers’ Market: Over 30 stalls selling produce from local farmers. There is one on Monument Square on the first and third Saturday of the month (9 am – 2 pm), and one on Hope Street (in the south-east) on the third Saturday of the month.
ENTERTAINMENT
Theatre
Everyman Theatre
Everyman and Playhouse Theatres: sister theatres with a wide programme of local and international performers and performances.
Unity Theatre: has built a reputation on staging innovative productions and won Best Performing Venue (Mersey Partnership Tourism Awards) in 2003.
Liverpool Empire Theatre: This is the largest two tier theatre in the country and hosts touring productions, musicals and concerts.
Liverpool Philharmonic Hall: Not strictly a theatre, of course, but this fabulous art deco building plays host to many first-class musical performances including jazz, rock, contemporary and classical, and is the home of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra. The venue also has a cinema which shows classic films.
Cinema
FACT: FACT stands for the Foundation for Art & Creative Technology. Founded in 1988, FACT claims to be the UK’s leading organisation for "the commissioning and presentation of film, video, and new media art forms".
The FACT venue has the Picturehouse multi-screen cinema which specialises in independent and art-house films, and houses exhibitions and performances from film, theatre and new media artists.
There is also a multi-screen Odeon on London Road, and the Philharmonic has a classic movies programme.
Museums & Art Galleries
Merseyside Maritime Museum
Tate Liverpool: Situated in a converted warehouse at Albert Dock, the Tate has a fantastic contemporary art collection, and is one of the largest outside of London.
It is home to the National Collection of Modern Art in the North, as well as holding various temporary exhibitions, and there is a regular programme of tours, talks, lectures and events.
Merseyside Maritime Museum: Also located in a former warehouse at Albert Dock, this museum documents the history of one of the world’s most famous ports and its people.
Walker Art Gallery: A great collection of more traditional art including European Old Masters, and Victorian and pre-Raphaelite paintings. It also has modern British art and a gallery aimed specifically at children called Big Art for Little Artists.
Western Approaches Museum: This bunker was a secret nerve centre in WWII, and housed Combined Operations which was responsible for controlling the Western Approaches, and ultimately winning the Battle of the Atlantic.
The Beatles Story Experience
Sudley House: Due to re-open this summer after a major refurbishment, Sudley House is the UK’s only Victorian merchant’s art collection still held in its original setting. It contains works by Gainsborough, Turner and Reynolds, and the house itself is surrounded by lovely gardens and parkland.
Albert Dock: Liverpool’s number one visitor attraction is situated by the waterfront, and is a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site and conservation area.
The Docks were opened in 1846-7 and were one of the world’s earliest examples of enclosed docks. Albert Dock Warehouses (generally five storeys plus basement) form the largest group of Grade 1 listed buildings in England.
Attractions at Albert Dock include art galleries, shops, bars and restaurants, and tours including The Yellow Duckmarine river cruise and The Beatles Story Experience.
Food & Drink
Chinese Arch
Liverpool has a huge array of pubs, bars, clubs and restaurants, and, as you’d expect from the city that spawned The Beatles, there are plenty of live music venues.
Albert Dock, Mathew Street and Ropewalks are all designated night-time spots with a range of lively venues.
60 Hope Street and London Carriage Works vie for the coveted Best Merseyside Restaurant of the Year award (the latter stole the title last year from four-times winner 60 Hope Street), and elsewhere there are independent and chain restaurants with food from around the world.
There is a Chinatown in the area around Nelson Street by Rope Walks which has the largest Chinese Arch in Europe.
Sport
Lifestyles, city centre
Liverpool is famous for its two premiership football teams, Liverpool and Everton, as well as horse-racing – Aintree to the north of the city is home to the Grand National but also hosts a few some smaller races throughout the year. Both Aintree and Anfield, Liverpool FC’s stadium, operate regular tours for fans.
There are various golf courses close to Liverpool including the Royal Birkdale which will host next year’s Open tournament.
Liverpool International Tennis Tournament in Calderstones Park (south of the city) is an annual event which attracts some of the sport’s big names, and last year saw the first Liverpool 08 Squash Tournament which is expected to become a major event.
Rugby in the city is also seeing a surge in popularity, led by the St Helens Saints and Widnes warriors, and following on from last year’s Powerboating Grand Prix, watersports are also becoming a favourite activity – canoeing, windsurfing, and jet skiing are some of the sports that are easily accessible around the coastline.
There are several council-operated leisure centres (Lifestyles) around Liverpool, the most central of which is Lifestyles Millennium in Victoria Street. Work is underway on an Olympic-sized swimming pool in the Wavertree district which should be open in 2008.
Parks & Open Spaces
St John’s Gardens: The full title of this charming piece of city greenery is St John’s Ornamental and Memorial Garden.
It was opened in 1904 and is the only park in Liverpool City Centre. It is well-known for its many statues and memorials, and its formal lawns and flower beds provide a scenic respite from the city’s throngs.
There are other green havens in the city, albeit it not actual parks – these include St Nicholas Church Gardens which have beautiful views over the Mersey, and Falkner Square which used to be a private garden for the residents of the square but is now accessible to everyone.
A brand new city centre park is planned as part of the Liverpool One project.
There are plenty of parks and open spaces in the outskirts of the city, such as Wavertree, Sefton and Calderstones parks – the latter also incorporates the Harthill Botanical Gardens which were founded in 1802 and have almost 4,000 species of global plants.
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