Central Village, Liverpool
Encyclopedia
Central Village is shopping, leisure, commercial and residential development that is currently under-construction in Liverpool
, England
, United Kingdom
. The complex is being built over Liverpool Central railway station
, the UK's second busiest underground station outside of London. The core of the project is two high rise blocks of 25 and 20 floors linked by a 9 storey residential and commercial podium and two nine and five storey buildings for residential, hotel and commercial use. The development is by Merepark and is predicted to cost £160 million. It is one of a number of ambitious projects to take place in Liverpool city centre in the early 21st century - other developments being Liverpool One, King's Dock, Princes Dock
, Lime Street Gateway
, Metquarter
and developments in the Commercial District. The proposed development includes the famous Lewis's
department store Building. Besides the residential, commercial and leisure aspects of the development, there will also be a number of office buildings and a large QPARK multi-storey car park
- which will be the first part of Central Village to be completed in 2011. Planning permission was granted for the project by Liverpool City Council
in May 2009, final approval was given for construction of the entire complex to commence in February 2010. The entire Central Village scheme is due for completion in 2013 with 3,000 jobs being created (1,000 in construction and 2,000 permenantly post completion).
Multiplex Cinema in Liverpool One. Although it has now been confirmed that this will also be an Odeon. Savills
and CB Richard Ellis
are the leisure and retail agents for the Boardwalk at Central Village. A large plaza within the Boardwalk area will contain water features and seating. Besides the Boardwalk, there are two more retail sector within Central Village, the Central Shopping Centre which already exists as part of the entrance to Central Station will be completely redeveloped with Sainsbury's and Superdrug
being two of the larger stores. The single largest retail aspect of the Central Village scheme is the redevelopment of the 39000 m² (419,792.5 sq ft) nine-storey Lewis's building which is described in more detail in the section titled ' Lewis's Redevelopment'. Central Village will back on to Bold Street
, one of the main shopping streets in the city.
Numerous companies have already confirmed plans to open restaurants, shops and leisure facilities in Central Village. Some of these future tennants include Chiquito
, Cosmo, Frankie & Benny's
, The Handmade Burger Company, ODEON
and Prezzo
.
's managing director, pledged a major overhaul of Liverpool's Loop Line underground stations. As it stands the redevelopment of Central Station is now one of the of the most important aspects of the Central Village scheme. In 2009 the station was identified as one of the ten worst category B
interchange stations for mystery shopper assessment of fabric and environment, and is set to receive a share of £50m funding for improvements. Alongside the surface level redevelopment of Central Station (which connects it directly to the main Central Village plaza via escalators), there are long term plans to expand and improve facilities at the station to handle the 40% more passengers who are expected to be using Central Station by 2020.
and are being developed by Central Regeneration Ltd. The tallest of the two apartment buildings will stand 76 metres (249 ft) tall and consist of 25 storeys, whilst the other tower will contain 20 storeys and be 61 metres (200 ft) tall. Upon completion, both buildings will rank amongst the twenty tallest in Liverpool. There were originally plans for a combined total of 320 apartments, however it has since been reduced to 214 in favour of more leisure facilities.
announced that they would be opening two hotels in Central Village (a hotel chain that is primarily aimed at corporate guests and leisure customers). The three or four-star Copthorne Hotel Liverpool will face onto Newington Square, whilst the four or five-star de luxe Millennium Hotel will be created in the refurbished Grade II listed Watson Building near the Lewis's building. The Copthorne will house some 174 hotel rooms and the Millennium will be the largest of the two with 240 rooms, they will also boast meeting and conference facilities, bars, restaurants and a gym. The Copthorne Hotel Liverpool and Millennium Hotel Liverpool are estimated to cost around £50 million (which is around 30% of the overall Central Village development's cost) and are scheduled to be constructed between 2011 and 2012.
building, which was Liverpool's most famous store for 154 years closed its doors for the last time on 29 May 2010 and will be redeveloped as part of the Central Village project. Lewis's is the only currently standing building that will house retail outlets of Central Village in the near future. Close to 17000 m² (182,986.5 sq ft) of retail and leisure space will be spread across five floors (basement level, lower ground floor, ground floor, plaza level and upper plaza level). There will be 26 units with an average floor space of 620 m² (6,673.6 sq ft) (although the largest unit covers 2240 m² (24,111.2 sq ft)). This will bring the total retail and leisure space in Central Village to around 24000 m² (258,333.9 sq ft), effectively making it the third largest shopping centre in Liverpool city centre behind only Liverpool One and St. John's Shopping Centre
. Large amounts of office space and a 125-room Adagio
hotel will occupy the remaining floors. This part of the scheme has been criticised over the lack of negotiation with Lewis's
owner Vergo Retail
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. The complex is being built over Liverpool Central railway station
Liverpool Central railway station
Liverpool Central railway station is a railway station in Liverpool, England, and forms the central hub of the Merseyrail network, being on both the Northern Line and the Wirral Line. In the years 2008/09, Liverpool Central station was shown to be the busiest station in Liverpool, despite being...
, the UK's second busiest underground station outside of London. The core of the project is two high rise blocks of 25 and 20 floors linked by a 9 storey residential and commercial podium and two nine and five storey buildings for residential, hotel and commercial use. The development is by Merepark and is predicted to cost £160 million. It is one of a number of ambitious projects to take place in Liverpool city centre in the early 21st century - other developments being Liverpool One, King's Dock, Princes Dock
Princes Dock
Princes Dock is a dock on the River Mersey, England and part of the Port of Liverpool. It is the most southerly of the docks situated in the northern part of the Liverpool dock system, connected to Princes Half Tide Dock to the north...
, Lime Street Gateway
Liverpool Lime Street railway station
Liverpool Lime Street is a railway station serving the city centre of Liverpool, England. The station lies on a branch of the West Coast Main Line from London Euston, and on the Wirral Line of the Merseyrail network...
, Metquarter
Metquarter
Metquarter is an luxury shopping centre consisting primarily of boutique stores located in central Liverpool, England.-History:The current Metquarter building previously served as Liverpool's General Post Office, and was probably the finest post office in the UK, reminiscent of a French chateau...
and developments in the Commercial District. The proposed development includes the famous Lewis's
Lewis's
Lewis's was a large department store in Liverpool city centre. It was formerly the flagship of a chain of department stores under the Lewis's name, that operated from 1856 to 1991, when the company went into administration. Several stores in the chain were bought by the company Owen Owen and...
department store Building. Besides the residential, commercial and leisure aspects of the development, there will also be a number of office buildings and a large QPARK multi-storey car park
Multi-storey car park
A multi-storey car-park is a building designed specifically to be for car parking and where there are a number of floors or levels on which parking takes place...
- which will be the first part of Central Village to be completed in 2011. Planning permission was granted for the project by Liverpool City Council
Liverpool City Council
Liverpool City Council is the governing body for the city of Liverpool in Merseyside, England. It consists of 90 councillors, three for each of the city's 30 wards. The council is currently controlled by the Labour Party and is led by Joe Anderson.-Domain:...
in May 2009, final approval was given for construction of the entire complex to commence in February 2010. The entire Central Village scheme is due for completion in 2013 with 3,000 jobs being created (1,000 in construction and 2,000 permenantly post completion).
Project timeline
- June 2006 - Planning permission is obtained for the development.
- October 2006 - The largely run-down site on which Central Village will be built is acquired by Merepark.
- October 2006 - In the same month as site acquisition, funding for the project is received.
- Early 2007 - Projected start date for construction however some decisions were pending and more focus was given to the L1 development, it was delayed for a number of years.
- May 2008 - Permission is granted to build the Copthorne Hotel Liverpool within Central Village.
- October 2008 - Permission is granted to create the Millennium Hotel Liverpool in the former Watson building.
- November 2009 - To accompany the redevelopment of Central Station, money is pledged to improve and expand overall facilities within.
- February 2010 - Lewis'sLewis'sLewis's was a large department store in Liverpool city centre. It was formerly the flagship of a chain of department stores under the Lewis's name, that operated from 1856 to 1991, when the company went into administration. Several stores in the chain were bought by the company Owen Owen and...
department store announces it will not renew the lease on the advice of Merepark - May 2010 - First contract awarded to McGee to design and build a £7 million 459-space car park which will become the first phase of construction in the summer of 2010.
- May 2010 - Lewis's closes its doors after 154 years of trading, after its parent Vergo RetailVergo RetailVergo Retail Ltd was a department store business based in Liverpool, England, founded in 2007 and currently in administration. Vergo Retail ran 20 shops, consisting of nine department stores, including Lewis's of Liverpool, Robbs of Hexham, Joplings of Sunderland and Derrys of Plymouth and four...
went into administration.
Boardwalk and retail sector
The 'Boardwalk' is the centrepiece of the Central Village development, retail and leisure facilities are the sole components of this area. The Boardwalk will consist of 3700 m² (39,826.5 sq ft) of leisure space over two levels (the Boardwalk level and the Plaza level), there are seven units that will be leased with the smallest being 355 m² (3,821.2 sq ft) and the largest being 700 m² (7,534.7 sq ft). A 3030 m² (32,614.6 sq ft) six-screen cinema will be the anchor tenant of the Boardwalk and was initially thought to rival the nearby 14-screen ODEONOdeon Cinemas
Odeon Cinemas is a British chain of cinemas, one of the largest in Europe. It is owned by Odeon & UCI Cinemas Group whose ultimate parent is Terra Firma Capital Partners.-History:Odeon Cinemas was created in 1928 by Oscar Deutsch...
Multiplex Cinema in Liverpool One. Although it has now been confirmed that this will also be an Odeon. Savills
Savills
Savills plc is a global real estate services provider listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. They have an international network of more than 200 offices and associates throughout the Americas, the UK, continental Europe, Asia Pacific, Africa and the Middle...
and CB Richard Ellis
CB Richard Ellis
CBRE Group, Inc. , a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 company headquartered in Los Angeles, is the world’s largest commercial real estate services firm . The Company has approximately 31,000 employees , and serves real estate owners, investors and occupiers through more than 300 offices worldwide...
are the leisure and retail agents for the Boardwalk at Central Village. A large plaza within the Boardwalk area will contain water features and seating. Besides the Boardwalk, there are two more retail sector within Central Village, the Central Shopping Centre which already exists as part of the entrance to Central Station will be completely redeveloped with Sainsbury's and Superdrug
Superdrug
Superdrug Stores PLC is Britain's second-largest beauty and health retailer behind Boots. Superdrug - part of the AS Watson Group which in turn is part of the Hong Kong conglomerate Hutchison Whampoa - is a UK based company with over 890 stores, which since 2006, includes the Republic of Ireland...
being two of the larger stores. The single largest retail aspect of the Central Village scheme is the redevelopment of the 39000 m² (419,792.5 sq ft) nine-storey Lewis's building which is described in more detail in the section titled ' Lewis's Redevelopment'. Central Village will back on to Bold Street
Bold Street, Liverpool
Bold Street is a street in Liverpool, England. It is known for its cafés and for the Church of St Luke, which is situated at the top end. The bottom end leads into the area surrounding Clayton Square, which is part of the main retail district of central Liverpool. The bottom end contains more...
, one of the main shopping streets in the city.
Numerous companies have already confirmed plans to open restaurants, shops and leisure facilities in Central Village. Some of these future tennants include Chiquito
Chiquito (restaurant)
Chiquito is a UK-based restaurant chain specialising in Mexican food. The company was established in 1989 and has 68 restaurants across the country. It dubs itself as 'The Original Mexican Grill & Bar' and has been described as the United Kingdom's best-known Mexican chain...
, Cosmo, Frankie & Benny's
Frankie & Benny's
Frankie & Benny's is a chain of Italian-American restaurants in the UK with numerous outlets nationwide run by The Restaurant Group plc. Its first location was Leicester in 1995 but now the chain has over 150 locations across the UK and also abroad, and smaller branches called "Little...
, The Handmade Burger Company, ODEON
Odeon Cinemas
Odeon Cinemas is a British chain of cinemas, one of the largest in Europe. It is owned by Odeon & UCI Cinemas Group whose ultimate parent is Terra Firma Capital Partners.-History:Odeon Cinemas was created in 1928 by Oscar Deutsch...
and Prezzo
Prezzo (restaurant)
Prezzo is a chain of Italian restaurants in the United Kingdom. The first restaurant opened on New Oxford Street, London in November 2000. There are now over 160 branches all over England, and Scotland...
.
Central Station redevelopment
Although not the largest in Liverpool city centre, Central Station proved the busiest in the 2008/2009 period when close to 20 million passengers passed through the station in the space of a year. In December 2007, Bart Schmeink, MerseyrailMerseyrail
Merseyrail is a train operating company and commuter rail network in the United Kingdom, centred on Liverpool, Merseyside. The network is predominantly electric with diesel trains running on the City Line. Two City Line branches are currently being electrified on the overhead wire AC system with...
's managing director, pledged a major overhaul of Liverpool's Loop Line underground stations. As it stands the redevelopment of Central Station is now one of the of the most important aspects of the Central Village scheme. In 2009 the station was identified as one of the ten worst category B
United Kingdom railway station categories
The 2,535 railway stations on the National Rail network in the United Kingdom are classified into six categories and four subcategories by the Department for Transport. The scheme was devised in 1996 and there was a review in 2009 when 106 stations changed categories. The categorisation scheme is...
interchange stations for mystery shopper assessment of fabric and environment, and is set to receive a share of £50m funding for improvements. Alongside the surface level redevelopment of Central Station (which connects it directly to the main Central Village plaza via escalators), there are long term plans to expand and improve facilities at the station to handle the 40% more passengers who are expected to be using Central Station by 2020.
Central Station Towers
Central Station Towers 1 and 2 are the most ambitious aspect of the Central Village development. Located directly above retail space in Boardwalk building, the towers are the only residential part of Central Village. The towers were designed by architect firm Woods BagotWoods Bagot
Woods Bagot is a global design studio specialising in the design and planning of facilities across three key sectors: education and science, lifestyle, and workplace....
and are being developed by Central Regeneration Ltd. The tallest of the two apartment buildings will stand 76 metres (249 ft) tall and consist of 25 storeys, whilst the other tower will contain 20 storeys and be 61 metres (200 ft) tall. Upon completion, both buildings will rank amongst the twenty tallest in Liverpool. There were originally plans for a combined total of 320 apartments, however it has since been reduced to 214 in favour of more leisure facilities.
Millennium and Copthorne Hotels
In January 2009 hoteliers Millennium & CopthorneMillennium & Copthorne Hotels
Millennium & Copthorne Hotels plc is a leading British-based hotel business. Including the pipeline, the company owns or operates over 120 hotels in 19 countries around the world...
announced that they would be opening two hotels in Central Village (a hotel chain that is primarily aimed at corporate guests and leisure customers). The three or four-star Copthorne Hotel Liverpool will face onto Newington Square, whilst the four or five-star de luxe Millennium Hotel will be created in the refurbished Grade II listed Watson Building near the Lewis's building. The Copthorne will house some 174 hotel rooms and the Millennium will be the largest of the two with 240 rooms, they will also boast meeting and conference facilities, bars, restaurants and a gym. The Copthorne Hotel Liverpool and Millennium Hotel Liverpool are estimated to cost around £50 million (which is around 30% of the overall Central Village development's cost) and are scheduled to be constructed between 2011 and 2012.
Lewis's redevelopment
The 39000 m² (419,792.5 sq ft) nine-storey Lewis'sLewis's
Lewis's was a large department store in Liverpool city centre. It was formerly the flagship of a chain of department stores under the Lewis's name, that operated from 1856 to 1991, when the company went into administration. Several stores in the chain were bought by the company Owen Owen and...
building, which was Liverpool's most famous store for 154 years closed its doors for the last time on 29 May 2010 and will be redeveloped as part of the Central Village project. Lewis's is the only currently standing building that will house retail outlets of Central Village in the near future. Close to 17000 m² (182,986.5 sq ft) of retail and leisure space will be spread across five floors (basement level, lower ground floor, ground floor, plaza level and upper plaza level). There will be 26 units with an average floor space of 620 m² (6,673.6 sq ft) (although the largest unit covers 2240 m² (24,111.2 sq ft)). This will bring the total retail and leisure space in Central Village to around 24000 m² (258,333.9 sq ft), effectively making it the third largest shopping centre in Liverpool city centre behind only Liverpool One and St. John's Shopping Centre
St. John's Shopping Centre
St John's Shopping Centre is the largest covered shopping centre in the city of Liverpool, located in the heart of the city since 1969 and boasting over 100 retailers...
. Large amounts of office space and a 125-room Adagio
Accor
Accor is Europe's leading hotel group , part of the CAC 40 index , and operates in over 90 countries. Headquartered in Courcouronnes, Essonne, France, near Évry, France, the group owns, operates and franchises 4,229 hotels ranging from economy to luxury on five continents .Previously, the group...
hotel will occupy the remaining floors. This part of the scheme has been criticised over the lack of negotiation with Lewis's
Lewis's
Lewis's was a large department store in Liverpool city centre. It was formerly the flagship of a chain of department stores under the Lewis's name, that operated from 1856 to 1991, when the company went into administration. Several stores in the chain were bought by the company Owen Owen and...
owner Vergo Retail
Vergo Retail
Vergo Retail Ltd was a department store business based in Liverpool, England, founded in 2007 and currently in administration. Vergo Retail ran 20 shops, consisting of nine department stores, including Lewis's of Liverpool, Robbs of Hexham, Joplings of Sunderland and Derrys of Plymouth and four...
See also
- List of tallest buildings and structures in Liverpool
- Lewis'sLewis'sLewis's was a large department store in Liverpool city centre. It was formerly the flagship of a chain of department stores under the Lewis's name, that operated from 1856 to 1991, when the company went into administration. Several stores in the chain were bought by the company Owen Owen and...
- Liverpool One