City buys wasteland once earmarked for £200m plans

A failed development site that has lain derelict for nearly a decade has been bought by a council for more than £10m.

The 4.5 acre (1.8 hectare) site, off Great George Street in Liverpool's Chinatown, has been a wasteland since a £200m scheme to build 790 luxury apartments stalled in 2016.

Liverpool City Council said it had bought the land after its former owner went into administration. It is now looking to find a developer to build homes and businesses.

Opposition figures said they wanted to see high-quality council homes on the site, not more "lifeless apartments".

The length of some of the leases on the site and complications around the former owners being in administration meant the council's purchase had to be approved by the High Court.

The sale of the land was approved by the High Court on 15 November and the deal was completed two weeks later.

Liverpool City Region Mayor Steve Rotheram said he was glad "legal hurdles" had been overcome.

He added: "Along with the addition of the new Liverpool Baltic Station, this is undoubtedly one of the most exciting development projects in the country."

Liverpool City Council said the combined authority and the government had backed the deal.

It said it was now working on plans to "catalyse" the wider regeneration of the Chinatown area.

Cabinet member for growth and the economy, Nick Small, said the development of the Great George Street area was "of critical importance to the city".

Carl Cashman, leader of the opposition Liberal Democrat group on Liverpool City Council, welcomed the deal but said he wanted the development plans to be reconsidered.

"I think there's an opportunity to build a good quality estate with a mix of council properties and private rental properties," he said.

"That's the best case scenario. The worst case scenario is a load more lifeless flats like we've seen in other parts of the city centre."