Skyscraper to go ahead despite no affordable homes

A 28-storey tower block has been approved by planners who waived a £650,000 contribution towards improving the area.

The building - backed by Home Bargains billionaire Tom Morris - is to be built about half a mile from Liverpool's Pier Head.

A Liverpool City Council planning meeting heard concerns about lack of affordable housing and parking facilities, with just 21 parking spaces planned for the development.

But city regeneration cabinet member Nick Small said the project was a "huge step forward".

The scheme was put forward by Davos Property Developments and Beetham Davos Ltd and is the first part of a £1bn scheme.

It will include 255 one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments but a report to planners before the meeting said the council agreed the developers would not have to make any of them "affordable" as the development "could not viably support it".

The scheme was also spared paying a significant share of its Section 106 contributions - money demanded from developers to pay for community projects such as tree planting or highways changes.

The developer's Section 106 contribution was reduced to £100,000 from an initial requirement of £750,000.

Liberal Democrat councillor Pat Moloney, who voted to block the development, said: "This is going to be a prestigious development right on the waterfront, commanding views of Liverpool and the bay.

"I cannot believe this scheme cannot contribute under Section 106."

Moloney also said it was "reckless" of the applicant to only provide 21 parking spaces, eight of which were for electric vehicles.

The planned building has recently reignited debate about whether such a tall building would have a negative impact on the city's waterfront, which lost its World Heritage Status in 2021 because of the impact of development.

Liberal group councillor Billy Lake, who also voted against the plan, said the building was "nondescript".

Planning officers acknowledged that while there were some clashes with existing policy, it was deemed the harms were outweighed by the potential public benefits.

Speaking after the approval was granted, Hugh Frost, of Beetham Davos. said: "It feels like we've pushed a big green button marked go.

"My thanks to the city council for their guidance and support and to my team for their hard work and focus.

"The tower is fully funded by the project shareholders and we will now move forward at pace."

Small said: "Today's approval is a huge step forward for Liverpool's continued regeneration journey.

"The King Edward Triangle is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to reshape an underused part of the waterfront.

"It will bring new homes, new jobs and new activity into a part of the city that has long been primed for renewal and it demonstrates the confidence investors and developers continue to place in Liverpool's future."

• Additional reporting by the Local Democracy Reporting Service

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