"Super team" to shape Gateway master plan for ₤2bn scheme

LIVERPOOL City Council has appointed a:- "super team" of planning experts to develop a master plan for the Knowledge Quarter Gateway site to a ₤2bn flagship regeneration scheme. After a major tendering exercise the Council has chosen a consortium of 3 companies to independently develop a Spatial Regeneration Framework (SRF) for the Knowledge Quarter Gateway (KQG) which covers more than 56 acres within the City centre.

The experienced team will be primarily tasked at looking at how best to redevelop the Lime Street area around the Adelphi Hotel, Central Station and Mount Pleasant and dovetailing the proposals from Liverpool John Moores University on its Copperas Hill site, plans for the Fabric District, Merseytravel's plans for Central Station and various private sector schemes such as Circus Liverpool at the old Lewis's building.

The KQ Gateway team's roles will be as follows:-

►  GVA HOW Planning - Strategic Planning and Consultation lead.

►  K2 Architects - Master Planning and Architecture lead.

►  Planit-IE - Place making and Landscape lead.

The team will also include a number of other supporting consultants including:-

►  Mott Macdonald (Transport).

►  GVA (Property Advisory Services)

►  Rob Burns (Heritage)

►  Enfusion (Strategic Environmental Assessment).

Liverpool City Council, which recently acquired Central Station Shopping Centre and is overseeing public realm proposals for St George's Plateau, has also set out an ambition to redevelop the Mount Pleasant Car Park area to create an international standard gateway for the KQ Liverpool Mayoral Development Zone, which currently employs 7% of the City's workforce.

The Council, which is also currently developing the ₤1bn Paddington Village scheme in the heart of the development zone, has timetabled the submission of the final SRF report by Spring 2019.

Once adopted as a Spatial Planning Document it will become part of the authority's statutory process to inform all future planning applications in the area.

Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson, said:- "The Knowledge Quarter Gateway is vital to this City's economic future and such is the scale of its potential it will be a huge employer for generations to come.  This gateway project is now the final piece in the jigsaw to connect the site to the rest of the City centre and complete the wider regeneration of Lime Street, Mount Pleasant and Brownlow Hill. Its impact cannot be underestimated and I'm delighted we have now a team of experts with the right experience to shape its direction."

The key planning issues within the KQ Gateway area are identified in the emerging Local Plan for Liverpool and include:-

►  Increasing economic potential and attracting and retaining high growth businesses.

►  Supporting and enhancing the retail function of the London Road Shopping Area.

►  Supporting the regeneration of the London Road Area and Islington for uses that support KQ Liverpool and deliver Islington Regeneration Company's vision for the area.

►  The appropriateness of the area for purpose-built student accommodation.

►  Improving public realm, connectivity and green infrastructure across the area.

►  Bringing under utilised and vacant land/buildings back into productive use.

Neil Lucas, at GVA HOW Planning said:- "We are delighted to be appointed to work on the Knowledge Quarter Gateway project with Liverpool City Council. Our team has been brought together especially for this project as we know Liverpool, having helped design, shape and deliver some of the biggest regeneration schemes in the City, such as 10 Streets, Liverpool Waters, Liverpool ONE, and Festival Park to name a few. We aim to build upon the good work that has already been undertaken to date in the SRF area, and prepare a document that will help guide the transformation of this key part of the City Centre into a true gateway of City, Regional and international importance."

Mark Davies, Director at K2 Architects, said:- "The KQ Liverpool vision is for a new epicentre that will break down the historical boundaries and repurpose the magnificent heritage to reconnect the Gateway to the City, Knowledge Quarter and the Waterfront.The KQ Gateway is about ambition, not excepting the norm and going the extra mile, Liverpool City Council share this ambition and this team will now deliver it."

Pete Swift, Managing Director at Planit-IE, added:- "We are excited about working collaboratively to envision what the 'threshold' of the KQ will look like, how it will function and most importantly its role in our dynamic and growing City. Working also as part of the University of Liverpool masterplan team, Planit-IE are keen to explore the 'glue' and engage in the wider debate on what is the largest area of City-making potential anywhere in Liverpool."

Colin Sinclair, Chief Executive of KQ Liverpool, commented:- "The phenomenal growth of KQ Liverpool, along with the ongoing regeneration of Lime Street, has shone the spotlight on KQ Gateway. It represents 1 of the greatest development opportunities in the UK and, alongside Paddington Village, will have a major impact on the City's economy, creating thousands of jobs, in science, tech, health, education, retail and leisure. The SRF will truly allow us to plan a world-class development, enabling Liverpool to continue to compete with any City in Europe."

Once approved by the Council's Cabinet, the SRF will be adopted as a Spatial Planning Document to guide all future planning applications in the area and provide developers with detailed information of design and build issues including height, scale and massing of buildings.

UCLan Publishing to bring acclaimed New York writer back to UK

A New York Times best selling author is returning to the UK as he begins a 3 week book tour with the University of Central Lancashire's (UCLan) publishing house. Preston born AJ Hartley will be touring the country until 26 July2018 to promote his ghostly thriller Cold Bath Street, which is set around the Miley Tunnels that lie under the City.

The book was edited, project managed, designed and produced by students on UCLan's MA Publishing course in the only student-led, student run publishing house in the world, UCLan Publishing. It became an instant success, selling out in the City's Waterstones book shop within a week and holding the number 1 best seller spot ever since.

Now the acclaimed author will take part in several events in Preston as part of a tour that will also take him to the International Shakespeare Conference for an:- 'In Conversation With' style evening with Christopher Eccleston, who will perform the audio book, and to various signing events in Glasgow, London, Liverpool, the North East and Yorkshire.

AJ will also headline the:- 'Supernatural and Fantastical Northern Young Adult Literary Festival,' at Venue 53, in Preston, on the 21 July 2018, where the winner of the Supernatural and Fantastical Short Story Competition for 11 to 18 year olds will be announced.

AJ commented:- "It has been fantastic working with the students during the editorial process. They are so dedicated and professional; it gives me hope for the future of the industry. I love the fact that the competition will inspire young writers."

Other Lancashire based highlights include a ghost themed evening at Hoghton Tower, with ghost tours, talks and a book signing on the 15 July2018 and a special event at the Harris Museum and Art Gallery with Barry Cunningham OBE, the publisher who signed J.K. Rowling for Bloomsbury, on the 18 July 2018.

Associate Professor of Publishing and Head of UCLan Publishing Debbie Williams has organised the tour. She said:- "We're really excited to bring AJ back to the UK, where he will spend the next few weeks championing Cold Bath Street as well as inspiring young writers through School visits, talks and book signings. The collaborative project with AJ and UCLan Publishing has been a fantastic experience for all involved. It has helped put Preston on the literary map and given the students the kind of hands on, practical experience they need to work in the publishing industry."

Find out more and book tickets for the Hoghton Tower event, Barry Cunningham and AJ in Conversation at the Harris and the Supernatural and Fantastical Northern Young Adult Literary Festival online.

For more information about UCLan Publishing and Cold Bath Street visit:- UCLanPublishing.com.