Liverpool Waters


Liverpool Waters is a large scale £5.5bn development that has been proposed by the Peel Group in the Vauxhall area of Liverpool, Merseyside, England. The development will make use of a series of presently derelict dock spaces at Central Docks, with much of the docks in a World Heritage Site. This is an area north of Liverpool's historic Pier Head. It is the sister programme of the Wirral Waters project. Since 2012 the two projects have enjoyed enterprise zone status, together forming the Mersey Waters Enterprise Zone.

The development

The development is planned to create at least 17,000 full-time jobs and 21m sq ft of new commercial and residential floor space including 23,000 apartments and four hotels. The tallest towers are proposed to be over 50 storeys high.
It is split into four sectors:
The developers have stated that the project may take 50 years before it is finished. The proposals are presently at the planning stage and are subject to public acceptance.
The planning applications were submitted by the developers on 4 October 2010. As of March 2012, Liverpool City Council has granted planning permission to the Liverpool Waters scheme as a whole. English Heritage has formally objected to the plans and UNESCO has expressed concern, placing Liverpool - Maritime Mercantile City on its List of World Heritage in Danger in 2012.
The proposal was referred to Communities Secretary Eric Pickles to assess whether to hold a public inquiry. Pickles' decision not to call a public inquiry, announced in March 2013, means that the project can go ahead regardless, although it is unclear what the next steps are or when they may be taken.

Transport links

A monorail to link the area to Liverpool's city centre, with the potential to connect to the John Lennon Airport has been proposed.

Risk to Liverpool's World Heritage status

In July 2017, UNESCO warned that Liverpool's status as a World Heritage Site was at risk of being rescinded, partly in light of Liverpool Waters' development proposals, with English Heritage asserting that the proposals would leave the setting of some of Liverpool’s most significant historic buildings “severely compromised”, the archaeological remains of parts of the historic docks “at risk of destruction”, and “the city’s historic urban landscape... permanently unbalanced”.