The Mayor of Liverpool City Region has announced plans to establish the area’s first Mayoral Development Corporation to fast-track the delivery of thousands of homes and major commercial developments across Liverpool.
Steve Rotheram will use devolved powers to create the statutory body, working in partnership with Liverpool City Council Leader Cllr Liam Robinson, to accelerate regeneration in a new development zone spanning 174 hectares of mainly brownfield land.
The proposed zone stretches from the River Mersey to the city’s Pumpfields and commercial business districts, building on momentum created by Everton Football Club’s new Hill Dickinson Stadium at Liverpool Waters.
Liverpool City Council has identified potential for more than 17,500 new homes and 5 million square feet of commercial space to be delivered within the North Docks area over the next 15 years.
The development zone would bring together three major schemes: the Central Docks development, featuring a new urban park backed by £55 million in government funding and £26 million from Peel Waters, due for completion in 2028; the emerging £1 billion King Edward Triangle development; and Liverpool’s first major Grade A office scheme in a decade at Pall Mall.
The Mayoral Development Corporation would serve as a statutory body with powers to bring land forward, deliver infrastructure and deploy flexible financial tools to accelerate development. The legal establishment process is expected to take approximately 12 months, and the MDC could potentially instigate additional development zones.
The proposal responds to recommendations from the Liverpool Strategic Futures Panel’s final report, published last March, which called for steps to establish a regeneration delivery vehicle.
Mayor Rotheram said the MDC would be a key component in accelerating delivery of £11 billion of planned infrastructure investment across the Liverpool City Region, supporting job creation, improved public transport and sustainable economic growth.
The announcement coincides with Liverpool hosting the UK Mayoral Council, chaired by Housing Secretary Steve Reed MP. During the visit, the Minister and Mayor will tour key North Docks development sites, including Central Docks, where work is underway to deliver around 2,350 new homes, including affordable and build-to-rent housing.
The initiative follows last month’s landmark £700 million devolved housing settlement for Liverpool City Region, granting local leaders greater control over building the affordable, high-quality homes the region needs.
This marks the first time devolved development powers will be deployed in the Liverpool City Region to create such a transformational regeneration body.
Mayor Steve Rotheram said: ‘Liverpool’s iconic waterfront is one of the greatest assets in the country – but for generations, huge parts of the North Docks have stood as a reminder of the jobs and opportunities we lost after decades of post-industrial decline. Local people have waited far too long to see this area brought back to life but, working in partnership with government, we’ve now got a once-in-a-generation chance to put that right.
‘We only need to look at the transformation of the Albert Dock to see what can happen when we back a bold, long-term vision. With Everton’s new stadium rising on the Mersey and partners pulling in the same direction, the North Docks can follow that same journey – from derelict land to a place that local people are proud of and visitors want to be part of.
‘By bringing our plans, powers and investment together through a new development corporation for the area, we can unlock one of the biggest brownfield sites in the country and turn it into thousands of good homes, decent jobs and a proper community where families can thrive.
‘And with the £700m housing settlement we’ve just secured, we finally have the tools to get things moving. This is about giving the North Docks the future it deserves – and making sure local people feel the benefit of the opportunities that come with it.’
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