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₤1bn vision for Wirral
takes the next step
THOUSANDS of jobs are set to be created throughout
Wirral as the Council's ambitious regeneration plans take an important step
forward.
First announced at international property conference MIPIM
earlier this year, the Wirral Growth Company will now officially go to
market seeking an investment partner for a potential ₤1bn development
programme.
Council leader Phil Davies says there has already been
interest from major global developers and he is confident that residents
will see 'spades in the ground' on new schemes within the next
12 months.
Cllr Davies said:- "Following the recent successes
of Liverpool and Manchester, I am proud to be putting Wirral forward as the
next great Northern regeneration opportunity. Only a few months ago we
went to the world's largest property and development conference to introduce
Wirral to the globe's biggest investors and developers. We shared our vision
for ₤1bn worth of development opportunities but we also knew we needed to
put a modern, commercially viable organisation in place to help us deliver
our goal. The Wirral Growth Company is that organisation and next week I
will be asking my Cabinet to approve the business case which will allow us
to formally find the investor partner who will turn our plans into the
bricks and mortar developments, jobs and economic growth we all want for
Wirral. We will start the competition at the end of this month, inviting
developers and investors to submit their ideas and proposals, and we will be
in a position to sign up with our new partner by the end of the year.
Residents will see spades in the ground on new construction developments in
the borough by early 2018."
The Council is putting in land and other assets into the
growth company and the successful partner will be expected to match this
commitment with capital and other resources to quickly drive regeneration
projects at key sites throughout the borough.
Key opportunities include:-
► The waterfront area around the Woodside Ferry Terminal in
Birkenhead, overlooking the Liverpool Skyline.
► Transforming Birkenhead Towns
Centre with new retail, leisure
and civic developments.
► Building on the success of New Brighton with more residential
and commercial developments.
► Revitalising communities such as Moreton, Bebington and
Seacombe with a mixture of residential, commercial and leisure projects.
Cllr Davies added:- "These schemes will create
communities and places people want to live and work in, and developers will
invest in. It is about having big ambitions.
We have got the investors interested, we have got the vision and ambition
and, setting up the growth company, we will have the organisation to
actually deliver."
Local architects, developers and urban planners have
already contributed ideas as to what Wirral could look like in the future.
Images and more information about the Wirral Growth Company is available
online.
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