Liverpool City Council is set to receive a £31m investment package that will boost its life sciences hub and one of the city’s most popular markets. The Council plans to spend the funding on the major infrastructure project in Paddington Village, an 8-storey office building with five floors of labs and Net-Zero features. Up to £13m will be spent on this project. £13m more will be dedicated to acquiring land & remedying Paddington South; £5m will be funnelled into a modernisation of the Great Homer Street Market located in Everton.
The scheme, known as HEMISPHERE One has a budget of £60m and will be delivered by Sciontec, a partnership between the Council, the University of Liverpool, Liverpool John Moores University, and Bruntwood SciTech. This project will include 80k sq ft of lab space in the building’s upper five floors, and Bramley Moore Dock will receive an “arc of opportunity” from the Knowledge Quarter area. Construction is planned for early 2025, with a full completion date set for early 2027.
The Liverpool City Council submitted its investment proposal to DLUHC in 2020, and the announcement follows the Interim Report of the Liverpool Strategic Futures Panel, chaired by Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram. The government views this funding as a significant part of the effort to organise urban renewal and development in Liverpool and the nearby region.
Michael Gove, the Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, said, “We know there is immense potential for urban regeneration in Liverpool and the wider city region… which trace an arc of opportunity from the Knowledge Quarter to Bramley Moore Docks on the waterfront.” Meanwhile, Council Leader Cllr Liam Robinson stated that “This investment will help to accelerate the city’s future as a world-leading science and innovation hub… In addition, the funding for Great Homer Street Market is equally welcome.”
Colin Sinclair, CEO of Sciontec Developments Limited and Knowledge Quarter Liverpool, reacted positively to the announcement. Sinclair said, “The world-class laboratory and workspace created at HEMISPHERE will play a pivotal role in that continued success, and an expanded Paddington Village will be the engine room for the delivery of wider Investment Zone plans for the next decade and beyond.
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