Garston Village Masterplan Report

Garston Village Masterplan

How to use this document: This documents forms part of the Garston

GARSTON VILLAGE MASTERPLAN

Village Masterplan, a suite of documents which have been produced for Liverpool City Council (LCC) by URBED (Urbanism, Environment, Design Ltd) with input from Eye and Fore Consulting.

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REPORT

DELIVERY PLAN

Garston Village Masterplan

The Masterplan consists of two parts, the Report (this document) which tells the story of Garston, setting out our analysis of the area along with what local people think, and our recommendations for regeneration. It also sets out a list of projects and illustrates these on an illustrative masterplan.

CONTAINED WITHIN THE REPORT

The second part of this Masterplan is the Delivery Plan. This is a working document which will be updated by LCC. This document goes into more detail about the delivery of

New Ref

Name

Description

LV01

South Cressington

Mixed Use residential led Long term development. Access via 10+ years Cressington Heath and Dock Road

LV02

Medium Demolition of Gas Banks Road New residential works kit and cease/ Development development on National to long 7-10+ years rationalisation of Sites Grid site and adjacent operations on site LCC owned land to by 2019. include a significant area Mixed - residential of new and improved and open space public open space development of 284 houses and apartments

A private development Cost of demolition £2.2 / S106 towards development of park million.

Under the Investment into energy Bridge efficiency of existing Improvement housing stock with Zone focus on hard to treat properties

Setting up of organistation to provide Green Deal/ ECO/ Home Improvement Loan advice for residents in properties in the Village area, which consists of approximately 690 houses, and determine houses eligible for funding

Cost £10k per unit Total cost £2.5m assuming 50% homes/ residents eligible. 5 year programme of say 50 units pa

Setting up of organisation to provide Green Deal/ ECO/ Home Improvement Loan advice for residents in properties in the Village area, which consists of approximately 690 houses and determine houses eligible for funding

Green Deal Loans LCC (tbc) Cost £3m based on £10k Home Improvement Loans per unit and ECO money for eligible approx 50% eligible homes/ households residents.

6 year programme based on phases of approx 50 units pa

Work up project plan and funding streams.

Procure energy company partner to deliver.

Leisure or recreation facility / residential development (with large foundations to overcome ground conditions)

£3 million

A Privately Funded Development

LCC

A good place LCC to confirm to live acceptability of site for a range of uses with planners and soft market site to potentially interested parties

8-12 Homes

c.£1-1.5m over a 2 year period

Site sold on open market and value used to fund Space Agency

LCC/SLH

LCC to review best bids A good place to live and select offer

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Dingle Bank

Development onto Church Road to provide active frontage and improve connection between St Mary’s Road and Under the bridge. Potential site for Leisure facility/

Medium 3-10 years

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Former Market Site

Residential development Short of 8-12 houses on 0-3 years the vacant former market site

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Garston Creation of framework Old Road to facilitate Investment Improvement into energy efficiency of Zone existing housing stock with focus on hard to treat properties

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Masterplan Theme

Residential led development: 310 homes with potential for waterside uses

£31m based on £100k per unit private developer costs

A private development funded by ABP or via/ with a development partner selected

by ABP

ABP

Planning application to be prepared by ABP for the South Cressington Development. Vehicular access issues to be resolved

A good place to live

Capita Symonds on behalf of National Grid/ LCC

Capita Symonds to dispose/ develop site on behalf of National Grid.

A good place to live/ a green, well connected neighbourhood

£28.4m for new housing based on £100k per unit.

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each project and how it will be funded, as bringing each project forward.

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To Coastal Reserve + Business Parks

DESIGNATIONS MAP

ILLUSTRATIVE MASTERPLAN

PROJECTS MAP

PROJECT LIST

Green Deal Loans LCC (tbc) Home Improvement Loans ECO money for eligible households

LCC to have further consultations with National Grid with a view to marketing it’s land to interested parties in partnership Work up project plan and funding streams.

Procure energy company partner to deliver.

A good place to live

Contact SLH and LHT to determine appetite for improving energy efficieny of housing stock in area A good place to live

Contact SLH and LHT to determine appetite for improving energy efficiency of housing stock in area

Contents 1. Introduction

.................................. page 4

2. Executive summary .................

page 6

3. Why Garston is how it is .....

page 9

3a Garston as it is 3b Garston as it was 3c Garston’s character 3d Garston’s economy 3e Garston’s accessibility 3f What local people think 3g How Garston is doing 3h Why this is

4. How Garston could be ..........

3 page 31

4a Garston Village 4b A new vision for Garston Village 4c A policy for Garston Village

5. A plan for Garston ................... page 39 5a A masterplan for Garston Village 5b A good place to live 5c A place to do business 5d A green, well connected neighbourhood 5e A thriving high street 5f A distinctive image and strong identity

6. How to get there ....................... page 67 6a Delivery Framework 6b Funding 6c Project List

1.

Introduction This report is the result of a study commissioned by Liverpool City Council to prepare a regeneration strategy for Garston. The study has been undertaken

by URBED (Urbanism, Environment, Design) with transport planning advice from Fore Consulting and market advice from Eye. The process for preparing this strategy has included three roundtable consultations with the public and working closely with the council, local stakeholders and land owners.

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The brief for this project was to develop a masterplan for the area which would act as a shared vision for the future of Garston. The aims are to guide new development, enhance residential, industrial and green space and to identify projects to reverse the decline of Garston’s high street - St Mary’s Road, and strengthen the sense of community, ownership and place.

This has been articulated both as a regeneration strategy to guide action by the Council and others as well as planning policy to give certainty to developers looking to invest in the area. This will be aligned with the Local Development Framework for Liverpool, in particular, the Local Plan for Liverpool which is currently being produced.

This report stems from the South Liverpool International Gateway: Strategic Regeneration Framework, produced through Liverpool Vision.

The framework identified some recommendations for Garston which have been built upon in this document.

The team is made up of three consultancies, URBED, Eye and Fore.

Each has provided specialist advice for carrying out research in the area and identifying projects for change.

This study has consisted of an in depth analysis into the Garston area and its history and three roundtable workshops with local residents and businesses.

The purpose of these workshops was to engage local people’s views on the area and gain feedback on our proposals.

Consultation forms an important part of all of URBED’s work and we learned a lot from local people on how Garston should be regenerated. We held an exhibition at ‘Neighbours Day’ in May 2013 - an event hosted by two of the area’s local Housing Associations; South Liverpool Homes (SLH) and the Liverpool Housing Trust (LHT). We also developed an online blog to showcase our proposals and get comments and feedback.

Together with meetings with local stakeholders and landowners, consultation has directed the production

of this report and a Delivery Framework, which identifies projects to be undertaken in the Garston area.

The Report Structure Part 2 of this report summarises the key points to arise from the baseline analysis.

This is developed into Part 3 which identifies why Garston is how it is, looking into its past and describing the area at present.

Part 4 concludes our analysis of the area and identifies five themes for regeneration in the area.

Part 5 illustrates our recommendations for spaces and areas in Garston, in line with the five themes.

Part 6 is our Delivery Framework.

This breaks down the masterplan into a series of projects with outline costings and implementation routes before outlining a funding strategy to implement each vision.

LIV ER P

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Liverpool City Centre LIME STREET

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Liverpool South Parkway

Manchester Sheffield London

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Garston

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Locating Garston: Garston is located within 6 miles of the centre of Liverpool. The area lies in between Liverpool City Centre and Widnes, close to the Liverpool John Lennon Airport. The airport is served

by Liverpool South Parkway train station which lies to the north east of the area, and also provides excellent train links into Liverpool and out to Manchester, Birmingham and Nottingham.

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2.

Executive summary This framework for Garston has been undertaken by a team headed by URBED. It was commissioned by Liverpool City Council following a recommendation in the South Liverpool International Gateway: Strategic Regeneration Framework.

This identified Garston as a priority area and recommended that a more detailed strategy for the area should be commissioned. This strategy has been undertaken over the first half of 2013 and has involved extensive discussions with stakeholders, three community workshops and one public exhibition.

Our approach to the development of a neighbourhood strategy is based on an approach similar to a medical process.

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We start with a diagnosis of the health of the neighbourhood, look at the prognosis if nothing is done and then suggest a set of proposals as treatment. If we don’t fully understand the reasons why Garston is how it is today we risk wasting money on things that don’t work or worse still end up creating more problems. Our diagnosis of Garston is in four parts: • We conclude that the Village, to the north of St. Mary’s Road is a stable housing area with some signs of gentrification as people move into the area from other parts of the city and take advantage of proximity to the Parkway station. House values are starting to rise and while there remain a few properties in poor condition our judgement is that this area is stable and improving.

• We conclude that the Under the Bridge area has turned a corner. The area was showing signs of market failure a few years ago but the removal of the

worst stock and the injection of new housebuilding has changed the image of the area and the population profile which in turn has helped the older housing stock.

• We conclude that the industry and the port is also doing reasonably well.

The major employers are stable or looking to invest and while the port is interested in rationalising its land holdings this is part of long term investment strategy. Demand for smaller scale employment space is also holding up.

• We conclude that the main problem is with St. Mary’s Road, which is in a poor physical condition and has high levels of vacancy. This unfortunately colours the image of the whole of Garston so that the improvements elsewhere are overlooked.

Our prognosis is therefore that the housing and industrial areas are in a stable and improving condition and that this is likely to continue. There is scope to accelerate this improvement through measures to improve the housing stock

and the environment and to promote further housebuilding. The prognosis for St. Mary’s Road is less promising. At best it will continue to experience a long slow decline, at worst the recent loss of the Cooperative Store as an anchor could cause it to collapse. This strategy is therefore based on consolidating the improvements in the housing and industrial areas and developing a strategy to address St. Mary’s Road.

We start by suggesting a vision for Garston based on the idea of an urban village; a place with a mix of people living and working with a strong distinctive identity and a revived high street.

However we stop short of suggesting that the term ‘urban village’ be used as part of the marketing of Garston, suggesting instead that it be branded simply as Garston Village. This identity is proposed to cover the whole of the area, allowing the perception of two separate communities ‘Under the Bridge’ and ‘The Village’ to be phased out.

The vision is developed into five strategic themes which are used as the basis for 18 recommended projects:

1. A good place to live: This includes two proposed sites to be allocated for new housing, the western parts of the docks and the Gas Works on Banks Road. It also includes a scheme to promote the eco-retrofit of older housing stock in the area.

2. A place to do business: This is based on the consolidation and protection of the remaining industry in the area. It includes investment in the port and the protection of the industrial estates on Blackburne Street together with environmental improvements.

3. A green, well connected neighbourhood: This includes the creation of two major new open spaces; Dingle Bank which is proposed as a new leisure area to include a skate park and Banks Road which is to become a park which conserves areas of ecological importance. The plan also includes a new cycle route through the area from the station to the river, part of which would be an environmental scheme to improve the environment on Church Road under the bridge.

4. A thriving high street: The most important part of the strategy relates to St. Mary’s Road/Speke Road.

The starting point is to attract a new supermarket to anchor the

high street, where we have made considerable progress in discussion with a major convenience-retail chain.

This is linked to proposals to develop the former baths site and to make minor improvements to the layout of the market to safeguard its success. A further set of proposals is to suggest a market mechanism to encourage the occupation of vacant shop units, which we have called the Garston Space Agency. Linked to this are proposals for a low cost scheme to improve the appearance of the street.

5. A distinctive image and strong identity: The final set of proposals is meant to communicate the change that is being brought about in Garston with a programme of branding and signage. This would use the brand Garston Village and would include signs at the three main entrances to Garston as well as the possibility of a way marker on the bypass to help identify Garston.

These five strategic themes are developed into 18 proposals and the final part of the report develops these into a delivery framework. This covers priority, timing, costs and funding and is meant as a practical set of tools for the council and other stakeholders to take the strategy forward.

What could this mean in reality?

1. £109 million private investment in new housing on under-used or vacant land in the area; 2. Safeguarding of employment land along Blackburne Street to allow industries here to grow; 3. Investment into 62,000 sq m of green space - areas for leisure on Dingle Bank and a new park on Bank’s Road; 4. A thriving high street - aided by the Garston Space Agency - to bring vacant units on St Mary’s Road back into use; 5. A re-invented high street widening the pavements and painting the road to attract people onto St Mary’s Road and make it better for pedestrians; 6. 2km of new cycle routes right through the heart of Garston, to connect South Parkway with the coastal reserve and employment areas; 7. A new identity - Garston Village - to unify the whole area.

Installation of signs and artwork to let people know Garston Village is there and open for business.

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3a.

Garston as it is Garston has the potential to be a great place but at present the high street is experiencing decline. The area lacks a distinctive centre, whilst certain areas feel disconnected and unsafe. Recent regeneration efforts have been focused in neighbouring Speke, although there has been some investment in Garston. The area hosts a new NHS treatment centre, a new school and the Liverpool South Parkway train station, however none of these embody the place name ‘Garston’ in their identity.

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The Speke-Garston Ward has a population of 20,300 people, with approximately 13,295 people living in the Garston neighbourhood. The Office for National Statistics: Census 2011 data, paints a somewhat gloomy picture of the area: Unemployment in the neighbourhood is higher than average, with 9.7% of the economically active population being unemployed, compared with the Liverpool average of 6.7% and the average for England being 4.4% unemployed.

There is also a high percentage of unoccupied household spaces, with 9.9% being unoccupied compared to the Liverpool average at 5% and the average for England at 3.8%.

Deprivation The Index of Multiple Deprivation 2010, highlights that the Speke-Garston Ward displays some of the highest levels of deprivation within its boundaries. Two of the wards Lower-Super-Output Areas, which cover parts of Garston Village and Under the Bridge are within the 1% most deprived areas, nationally. The Index,

which combines a range of economic, social and housing indicators suggests something needs to be done to decrease the levels of deprivation experienced in the area.

Initiatives

Investments

Speke Garston

Estuary Commerce Park

Partnership -

(1998)

Garston Urban Village Plan 1996

On a more positive note, pupils achieving 5 or more A*-C GCSEs or equivalent is 58.1%, which is higher than the Liverpool average of 55.2% and just shy of the average for England at 58.8%.

Garston Urban Village Hall (1999) Bank’s Road Housing Estate: Wimpey (1990s) Liverpool South Parkway Train Station (2006)

Speke

Matchworks Business

The area of Speke lies to the east of Garston and hosts the New Mersey Shopping Park, the Estuary Commerce Park, Matchworks and the Liverpool John Lennon Airport, to name a few.

The adjacent Speke Estate, which faces similar problems to Garston, has witnessed a number of regeneration initiatives to try and eliminate deprivation.

Space: Urban Splash (2007) Garston Cultural

SlaughterHouse Gallery:

Partnership 2008

Artist Republic of Garston (2008, now closed)

South Liverpool

Cressington Heath

Gateway: Strategic

Housing Estate: Redrow

Regeneration

(2011)

Framework 2011

South Liverpool NHS

Regeneration in Garston

Treatment Centre (2012)

A number of regeneration initiatives have been implemented in Garston with varying results. Most new developments seem disconnected from each other and this may have resulted in the loss of ‘place’ experienced in Garston today.

Church Fields Housing Estate: Lovells (2012) The Garston Village Masterplan 2013

Enterprise South Liverpool Academy (2013)

Garston Lifestyles Centre

Long Lane Recreation Ground

Liverpool South Parkway

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Areas of Garston: The map identifies the different neighbourhoods and developments in Garston.

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3b.

Garston as it was The township of Garston has existed since early medieval times and pre-dates the City of Liverpool. The area has a rich history; the Garston District Historic society details how a Chapel existed on the site of St Michael’s Parish Church in 1261. The area consisted of a small, freestanding village, probably established around Garston river. The river, which had its sources in the hills of Allerton and Mossley Hill would have facilitated water mills for corn milling, agriculture and fishing, later providing conditions favourable for the Salt Works industry.

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By the late 1700s, the centre of Garston was becoming more defined, with a cluster of buildings and houses appearing at the junction of Chapel Road and Woolton Road.

Liverpool’s Industrial Revolution in the early 1800s would result in significant changes in Garston, with the introduction of the docks and industrial warehouses, providing vast employment opportunities.

slowly engulfing the township into the wider Liverpool City region. The Grassendale and Cressington Estates, to the north-west of Garston, were laid out at the turn of the 19th Century to house Liverpool’s increasingly wealthy businessmen and their families. These new estates, and others in Aigburth and Allerton contributed to the areas rapidly increasing population.

Industry

By 1849 a railway line had been constructed to serve the docks and neighbouring industrial areas, but this cut straight across Garston. It acted as a barrier between the two new areas it created, as access was limited to Church Road, where a bridge was constructed.

Garston’s availability of open space and its location on the Mersey meant it was an ideal site for a Salt Works, which arrived in the 1790s. Two docks were built to accommodate a fleet of boats which brought in unrefined salt from Northwich.

St Michaels Church to the south was now separated (but for access under the bridge), from the new centre of Garston -evolving around the newly laid St Mary’s Road which was transforming into the high street which exists today.

The introduction of large scale industry brought many workers and their families to the area. They were housed in rows of terraces in the two areas separated by the railway line; the ‘Village’ and ‘Under the Bridge’. These two detached communities developed separate identities and a rivalry ensued, which is perceived to exist to this day.

As Liverpool’s population grew, surrounding agricultural fields would become developed with housing,

The Gas Works was established in 1892 and the picture below of the large Gas Holders behind the existing St Michael’s Church emphasises the juxtaposition of religious alongside industrial. The church once stood at the heart of the village but was now cut off by the railway line and surrounded by industry.

Image courtesy of Garston District Historic Society

Maps of the area in the early 20th Century show how the fabric of Garston has been dominated by Industry, namely the port, railway, and gas works. This has had a large impact on creating two separate residential areas: The Village, which lies above St Mary’s Road high street north of the railway line and Under the Bridge which lies to the east of the docks, south of the railway line.

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1954

These historic maps depict the story of Garston’s development boom. The Salt Works was established in 1790s and rows of terraced streets were constructed to house workers. The introduction of the port and railway sidings in the mid 1850s marked the beginning of the industrial revolution in Garston.

3c.

Garston’s character Garston’s character has been in many ways dominated by its industrial past.

The position of the Port and railway infrastructure have had a real impact on the position of Garston’s neighbourhoods and the quality of the spaces in between. Historic buildings are becoming pepper-potted as older buildings fall into disrepair and are replaced by modern developments. St Mary’s Road is a purpose built Victorian high street and many buildings retain their early 20th Century character. However, more modern developments towards Speke Road are inconsistent and becoming dilapidated.

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The Village area mainly consists of Victorian and Edwardian terraces, with some larger villas to the north. Similar small terraces are also standing in the Under the Bridge area, but following an initiative to improve housing in the area, some of these were demolished and replaced with new housing.

The lighter red areas on the map are made up of mainly post-war housing estates. The pink areas are modern housing estates, built from the early 1990s onwards and these have mainly been developed by volume housebuilders such as Taylor Wimpey, Redrow and Lovells. It is often the case that these estates limit access into the site to one or two entrances and in some instances houses are laid around cul-desacs, providing no through routes.

This can detract from the townscape character as housing faces inwards and back-garden fences or empty facades front onto the street. This type of layout also promotes car use, which means people are not encouraged to walk or cycle around their neighbourhood.

Listed Buildings St Michael’s Church on Church Road and St Mary’s Church at the top of the high street are both Grade II Listed.

There are also a number of properties on Garston Old Road which are listed.

These are important for the area as they enhance the visual appearance of the townscape and retain a tangible insight into Garston’s rich history.

Industry The grey area is industrial land or warehouse space, and the plan emphasises how vast these areas are.

Standing at the cross roads of St Mary’s Road and Church Road, the skyline is dominated by the Gas Work structures which have overlooked St Michael’s Church since 1892.

The plan also emphasises how the railway line and Speke-Garston bypass cut through the area south of St Mary’s Road, restricting connections between the Village and Under the Bridge areas.

Green Space The area benefits from a number of

green open spaces including the Long Lane Recreation ground to the north, and the Coastal Reserve along the Mersey river to the south.

Dingle Bank is an expanse of green space which has great views of the Port and Mersey, however not all parts are accessible and the poor environment at access points into the site and overgrown foliage make it feel unsafe.

The site next to the Gas Works site has in the past undergone ecology surveys, highlighting the high level of biodiversity and nature conservation value on parts of the site. At present, the site is bounded by large concrete walls and so provides no visual enhancement to the surrounding area.

The expanse of these industrial areas and inaccessible green spaces mean the built environment feels disconnected.

The quality of the environment under the bypass and railway bridge is dark, run-down and unattractive, which is especially concerning as it provides the main access point into the Under the Bridge area.

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Community/ Religious Green Space Residential 1850s -1919 1920s - 1959 1960s - 1979 1980s - 1999 New housing (post 2000)

Land Use: The map identifies different land uses in the Garston area, as well as ages of residential buildings. The dark red areas are the Victorian terraces built to house the growing population as a result of the Industrial Revolution. Buildings in these areas follow traditional linear street patters, and especially in the Under the Bridge area, we can see that these traditional streets are being infiltrated by more modern developments.

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3d.

Garston’s economy St Mary’s Road is a long high street with almost a hundred shop units. This reflects the large demand for shops and services fuelled by a growing population in the early 20th Century. Today, however, fewer people are shopping along the high street, choosing instead to drive out of Garston to larger retail shops elsewhere and this is reflected in the high percentage of vacant and empty shops along St Mary’s Road.

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The high street grew at a time when a large population demanded services within walking distance. As communities have since moved away, fewer people shop on the high street. New housing developments make it easier to travel by car than walk around the area, meaning residents travel out to larger stores which provide a wider variety of products under one roof.

The introduction of a bypass in the 1960s has further accelerated this decline as passing traffic has been removed from the high street and instead potential shoppers travel straight past the area, often unaware Garston is there.

St Mary’s Road A snapshot of the the high street on a typical weekday showed that 25% of shops were vacant and 15% were only open in the evening or at certain times of the week, which creates a negative impact on the area.

The shops also extend onto James Street which is very run down and in the

past there were also shops on Church Road, south of the bridge that have since been demolished.

The shopping area extends onto Speke Road which is doing slightly better than St. Mary’s Road.

Window Lane Window Lane also once housed a small high street which has since been demolished due to the high cost of refurbishment. This deprives residents Under the Bridge of local services, increasing the need for St Mary’s Road to provide shops and services, albeit further away.

The Market A market used to be located opposite the Garston Masonic Hall on Island Road South until it was moved to the parking area on the southern side of Speke Road. The market is doing well, and opens every Friday, offering a range of products and making the street feel lively and inviting, however parking is an issue here.

Industry Garston is also an important industrial area. Much of this is related to the port and its associated industrial estates.

The port is currently trading well although it is seeking to consolidate the land area it requires. The freight terminal, is based on the railhead rather than the port and also sees itself as having a long term future in the area.

The industrial estates along Blackburne Street are experiencing mixed fortunes.

The Veolia Plant is looking to make a considerable investment in its plant and the company that formerly operated the tannery in the area is considering redevelopment options for the site it owns on Blackburne Street.

In terms of the smaller industrial units some are experiencing relatively strong demand while other areas have high levels of vacancy. This appears to be a result of the management of the space rather than the lack of underlying demand for the accommodation.

Vacant Shops on the High Street:

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St Mary’s Road

St Mary’s Road

Vacant or empty units

Including businesses which trade outside normal business hours

National Average Source: Local Data Company

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This map shows vacant and empty units, as well as shops which were closed on the high street on a week day in February 2013.

Closed or vacant shops can detract from the setting of the high street by reducing pedestrian activity and lessening the quality of people’s shopping experience.

3e.

Garston’s accessibility Garston has good public transport links; a number of buses run through the area and the Liverpool South Parkway train station is a ten minute walk from the cross roads at St Mary’s Road. However, deteriorating buildings and spaces which are cut off by railway infrastructure mean that walking and cycling in Garston can be unpleasant. The layout of new housing estates make it difficult to walk and cycle through Garston, further encouraging people to use their cars and drive out of the area.

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The plan on the next page emphasises the lack of connections to the Under the Bridge residential area, with only one prominent access point on Church Road which goes under the bypass and railway bridge, shown below:

Most streets in the Village feed directly into St Mary’s Road, which makes it easy for people to walk to the high street.

This is in contrast to the more modern housing-estate developments in the south which have been designed around a number of cul-de-sacs, resulting in a longer journey to the high street.

Road: Garston is well connected to the Strategic Highway network, and is well placed for access to the motorway system including the M62, M57 and M58. Other major routes include the

A561 linking Garston to Liverpool City Centre, the Airport, Runcorn and the M56. Much of the Local highway network is generally of a decent standard, being built during a period of planned development and high levels of traffic demand to and from the docks. This has left the area with a legacy of dense high capacity routes primarily running inland and north west/ south east along the Mersey estuary.

A grade separated bypass (Garston Way) allows much of the through and dock traffic to avoid Garston Village, resulting in a lower throughput of traffic than may otherwise be expected along St Mary’s Road. The introduction of this bypass in the late 1960s meant the village would be less congested with traffic, but it also meant passing trade was lost, and this may have aided the decline of St Mary’s Road.

Bus: Garston is situated on the route of several high frequency bus services, generally operating North-South between Liverpool City Centre and the Airport.

In addition to these, there is a small network of supported local bus services

operating tangential routes around the district.

Train: Liverpool South Parkway is a modern purpose built interchange and is well served by local and inter-regional services to destinations across the North and Midlands of England.

By foot and cycle: Garston’s urban nature means that pedestrian facilities in terms of pavements and crossings are generally of reasonable quality. There are few specific on or off-street facilities for cyclists. There is however cycling storage facilities provided at Liverpool South Parkway for users changing between cycle and bus/rail.

There are few single destinations in terms of employment/education/leisure attractions within reasonably expected range of pedestrians (2km). The closest sites of note are the New Mersey Shopping Park (1.5km/19 mins), and the Matchworks (1.2km/15 mins). The Jaguar Land Rover factory is 2.8km (10 mins) cycle away from Garston’s centre.

Liverpool City centre can be reached by a 9.2km (35 minute) cycle ride.

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Road Hierarchy: This map identifies how traffic is fed into different parts of Garston.

The Garston Way bypass means movement from north to south, through Garston is limited. There are also a large number of cul-de-sacs appearing in the more recent housing developments which will limit how walkable a neighbourhood is, and how well connected it is to the surrounding area.

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3f.

What local people think Between March and June 2013, we held three roundtable workshops to engage with people who live and work in the Garston area. This allowed us to understand what people liked and disliked about the area and identify their aspirations for the area. By giving local people the opportunity to have a say in proposals, we hope to deliver projects in Garston which are personal to the area and which make people happy and proud to be part of Garston.

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Engaging with the local community was important not only to get ideas and understand the issues, but also to present our solutions to the problems faced in Garston, which were based on experience and best practice.

The consultation process and outcomes from each event have been summarised in the flow-chart on the next page. An ‘Idea Bank’ has also been created on the following page to detail local people’s ideas and aspirations for the Garston area.

Frequently raised problems were concerned with empty shops and blight on the high street and a perception of two separate communities; Under the Bridge and the Village, which was also highlighted during our baseline analysis of the area.

The consultation also emphasised that people were positive about new housing being developed in the area, and

understood the benefits this could have by increasing demand for services on the high street.

A group of participants were keen to see the council owned land, located next to the Gas Works site turned into an ‘Eco-Park’ following a survey identifying it as a Local Wildlife Area. As a result of these suggestions the team looked into practical ways to fund and deliver these aspirations.

Questionnaire To collect feedback on our recommendations, a questionnaire was handed out at the exhibition and the third workshop and also made available to fill out online. The results from this highlighted that the majority of respondents were in favour of and supported most of our proposals for the Garston area, which was great news.

Where respondents were uncertain or concerned about our proposals, these were updated or changed to reflect local views or more work was carried out to justify why this would be the best option in Garston. This has been essential to the production of the project list and Delivery Framework, detailed in later chapters.

Alleviation measures, in response to concerns raised during the course of the consultation, have been addressed in more detail in Chapter 4 of this report; ‘A plan for Garston’.

A summary of responses from each consultation workshop and results from the questionnaire can be found on the URBED website under Archives: http://www.urbed.coop/projects/ garston-masterplan

Preparation

Consultation

Workshop 1 1.

Baseline Study A presentation of our initial ideas and research into Garston and what the study would entail was shown at the first roundtable workshop.

Outcomes The workshop allowed people to discuss what they thought of the area and identify what they thought needed to be done to improve the area. The majority of comments were concerned about the following themes.

This allowed us to continue our analysis of the area and start to draft together some recommendations for the area: • A perception of two separate communities • A need to improve the high street.

• A positive approach to new development • A need to open up space for recreation.

• A need to change the image of Garston and make it a destination.

2.

Analysis and Recommendations for Garston

Workshop 2

We concluded our research on Garston and took on board comments from the first workshop to identify a number of recommendations for the Garston area. This was put into a presentation and showcased at the next workshop for comment and feedback.

3.

Masterplan and Project Lists Feedback from the second workshop allowed us to draw up a list of themes which we wanted to achieve in the area.

We started to develop a project list which identified sites which could bring forward change in Garston and illustrated these on a masterplan sketch of the area. We then exhibited the masterplan and project list at the South Liverpool Homes ‘Neighbours Day’ an event held at the local Academy, to get peoples opinions.

A third workshop was also held to get people’s feedback on the project list and in particular identify what they wanted to see on the ‘Eco-Park’ site and the Industrial Estate north of Blackburne Street.

Exhibition, Workshop 3 + Questionnaire

The majority of participants agreed with our analysis of the Garston area and were positive about our recommendations. Concerns were raised that regeneration efforts would fail, following past experience and that the Garston Space Agency might not be financially viable. People were positive about new housing in the area and understood that this could fund improving Garston’s public spaces, providing a park on the site next to the Gas works and producing a high street which was pleasant to walk down.

In general, people were positive about our project list and masterplan for Garston, although some concerns were raised regarding providing housing on the LCC owned site, adjacent to the Gas works.

Participants were encouraged to fill out a questionnaire at the exhibition and workshop and a questionnaire was made available online. Ideas from this have been summarised on the next page and the results were used to create the masterplan themes and direct the project list.

4.

Draft Report and Delivery Framework

Garston Village Masterplan

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What local people think continued...

Idea Bank Positive, practical and popular ideas for the Garston area, expressed at the consultation workshops and through the Questionnaire, have been included below in relation to our 5 masterplan themes. These are opinions from people who live and work in the area; the true voices of Garston:

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- Housing should retain Garston’s character, it should provide a range of family housing as well as smaller properties for those who may be affected by the bedroom tax.

- Housing should be high quality but affordable.

A place to do business - Garston should be a business hub, it should incubate small businesses and as they grow, see them move in the Speke Business parks such as the Matchworks or Estuary Business park.

- Employment land should be safeguarded in Garston to provide jobs and make the economy better.

- Local entrepreneurs should be encouraged to invest in Garston and opportunities should be created for unemployed people.

A green, well connected neighbourhood

A distinctive image and strong identity

- Tidy up the bridge on St Mary’s road, give it a lick of paint and make it brighter, it needs to be attractive so people feel safe and happy to go under it.

- The gas work structures are a landmark in Garston and should be retained, or reused elsewhere in the Garston area.

A thriving high street - The high street should offer a variety of shops that people want, like cafe’s, bars, handcrafted gifts.

- ‘Village in Bloom’ or ‘Best kept shopfront’ competitions should be held in the village to empower local residents and businesses to take pride in the area.

- The Enterprise South Liverpool Academy should team up with the Garston Space Agency and look to open pupil-run businesses on the high street.

- Garston needs to be a destination, people need to see what Garston has to offer because it is a great place.

- Garston’s history should be celebrated, bring back the Garston carnival which went through the village - get the community spirit back.

- Bring back South Liverpool football club.

- The perception of Garston should be changed; people should aspire to want to live and stay in the area.

“

“

A good place to live

Pictures taken at the consultation workshops and ‘Neighbour’s Day’ exhibition

Workshop 1 13/03/2013

Workshop 2 16/04/2013

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Exhibition 31/05/2013

Workshop 3 04/06/2013

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3g.

How Garston is doing The conclusions from our research is that Garston is not doing too badly. The main problems relate to St. Mary’s Road, although this is of significance because it is the ‘face’ of the neighbourhood. The condition of St. Mary’s Road can give the impression that Garston is more run-down than it really is. It is therefore important to understand the wider picture to allow us to set priorities for Garston and to understand its potential. Our research set out on the previous pages has drawn the following conclusions:

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The Economy:

Under the Bridge:

Setting aside St. Mary’s Road for a moment, the wider economy of Garston is holding up well. We have spoken to many of the main employers and employment space managers in the area and the mood is reasonably upbeat given the broader economic climate.

The extensive neighbourhood between the railway and the river, traditionally known as ‘Under the Bridge’ due to its position, has in the past had a poor reputation and experienced a deteriorating built environment. However, the poor quality of housing in the area has been addressed over the last ten years. Around half of the older terraces were cleared and the area has seen substantial new house building – first

by Taylor Wimpey behind the Match Factory and subsequently by Lovells on the cleared housing sites. This housing has sold very well and Lovells have continued to build through the recession. Sales have largely been to local people, but also to a wider market of people looking for affordable housing in South Liverpool. This has changed the demographics of the area and the demand and achievement levels of local schools. This has also changed the image of the area and the desirability of the retained housing stock (a significant

The Docks and container terminal are expanding their trade and see themselves as having a long-term future in the area (albeit for the docks on a more compact site). Veolia is looking to make a major investment in their plant and the tannery that was once based in the area is looking to develop a new factory to serve Jaguar Land Rover.

While some smaller industrial units have experienced a rise in vacancies, others are almost fully let suggesting that the issues relate to management rather than lack of demand. We therefore see Garston and particularly the area around the docks as an important location for affordable industrial premises which in turn is an important source of local employment.

part of which is owned by housing associations). In our view the area has therefore been stabilised with demand for continuing new housing building and an ongoing need to improve the existing stock.

The Village: The Village is the area which lies to the north of the railway line. In the past the Village benefitted from proximity to a large high street and a good range of services. While the high street has struggled the housing in the village is generally of a good quality and most is in a reasonably good condition.

There are signs that the area is being gentrified, particularly in the north near to the park and the station. This is a good, affordable and accessible place to live with some large characterfull housing and appears to be attracting a creative community of people moving out of the centre of the city.

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Photographs of Garston taken in early 2013:

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1. Garston Port 2. Church Road bridge: The gateway between two neighbourhoods 3. Under the Bridge: New housing by Lovells 4. Under the Bridge: terraced housing

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5. Church Road: St Michaels Church and the Gas works structures

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6. Blackburne Street: Industrial Estate 7. Under the Bridge: traditional street 8. Window Lane: Shops waiting to be demolished

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How Garston is doing continued...

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We have met architects, designers, artists and people involved with the Liverpool Biennial all of whom have ‘discovered’ the Village as a good place to live in the last few years. While this type of Gentrification can create problems, on balance we see it as a positive for the area and an opportunity to address some of the issues on St. Mary’s Road.

St. Mary’s Road: The main problem in the area is St. Mary’s Road which is in a poor state and is vulnerable to further decline.

As we describe below the decline of the traditional high street is a national phenomenon and Garston is not unusual in experiencing vacancies and decline.

However, Garston being a longer-thanusual high street (as a result of it’s history) has much more to lose. During the course of the study the Cooperative supermarket on the High Street closed

down. While there is a small Asda (former Netto) at the western end of St. Mary’s Road, the Coop was the main anchor at the heart of the centre.

There is a risk that, without an anchor store the remaining retailers will struggle even more than they are at present. The bright spot however is the market which is larger and more successful than you would expect for a centre of this kind, holding out some hope for the future.

There is a need for a very practical strategy that seeks to replace the Coop as an anchor for the centre while finding alternative uses for retail units that are unlikely to be let in the future thus allowing the centre to consolidate.

There is general acknowledgement amongst most Local Authorities that radical solutions are needed for declining high streets although opinions on the most appropriate solution to adopts varies in different locations, for example;

• Freeman Street, Grimsby: the Council is curtailing a mile long high street around a single central anchor, changing use at either end to other uses like residential or open space.

• Liverpool Road, Salford: the Council is retaining the full length of the street but allowing long term vacant retail units to be converted into offices, houses and other uses.

The most appropriate solution for the high street will need to be explored in tandem with our recommendations for the wider area, to reverse decline, and re-invent St Mary’s Road - the face of Garston.

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Photographs of Garston taken in early 2013:

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1. The Village: Victorian housing 2. St Mary’s Road: Empty shops 3. Speke Road: The Friday Market 4. St Mary’s Road: The Liverpool Cake Fairy - an animated window display 5. Speke Road: The market

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6. Wellington Street: The Reading Rooms community centre

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7. St Mary’s Road: A vacant unit at the west end of the high street 8. Church Road: Pedestrian space on the corner of the crossroads - the centre of Garston?

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3h.

Why this is...

The history of Garston helps explain the way it is today. It still has the soul of the independent town that it once was and while it has been adsorbed into Liverpool it is still quite a long way from the city centre. In its form and population profile Garston is similar to many of Liverpool’s inner city districts yet it is four miles out of the city, beyond a belt of affluent suburbs including Cressington, Woolton and Mossley Hill.

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This caused it to develop a strong and independent community who lived and worked locally, many in the docks. In the age before mass car ownership this was a largely captive market.

People would have travelled occasionally into the city but most of their shopping, socialising and other needs would have been met locally. This together with all of the passing trade before it was bypassed, meant that St. Mary’s Road grew into a much larger shopping centre than would normally be expected in a place the size of Garston. In its heyday in the 1950s it was lined with shops, bustling with traffic and full of local people socialising.

The world has changed since then and the decline of high streets is not specific to Garston. While Garston’s economy remains strong the docks no longer employ the numbers they once did. It is no longer the case that the people who work in Garston will live locally and conversely many of the people

who live in the area will commute to jobs elsewhere in Speke, the city centre or even further afield because of the station.

The quality and affordability of the housing stock and the proximity to affluent suburbs to the west and north means that there is a potential that Garston will attract a more middle class community.

Spending power in Garston may therefore have risen but so has competition for that spend. The rise of the supermarkets and retail parks combined with the advent of mass car ownership has changed the way people shop.

Traditional retail areas can no longer rely on captive markets but must compete with places that are larger, cheaper, more convenient and offering free parking.

Added to this the construction of the Garston Way (while undoubtedly necessary at the time) has taken away all

of the centre’s passing trade, made the area largely invisible to the outside world and, to make matters worse, created a barrier that further cuts off the southern half of its catchment from the centre.

In an age when people are much more mobile and have a huge range of places to shop and socialise, traditional retail areas find themselves in a fiercely competitive environment.

Even the strongest have suffered, and Garston with its supersized high street, fragmented catchment area and its lack of passing trade, is particularly vulnerable.

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Photographs of Garston taken in early 2013:

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1. King Street: Eroding streetscape where Under the Bridge meets the Port 2. Bank’s Road: Closed-off, overgrown land bounded by concrete walls and fencing 3. Speke Road: Parking spaces infront of the line of shops, occupied by the market on Fridays

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4. Chapel Street: The Wellington Rooms, once the artistic republic of Garston

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5. Banks Road: A claustrophobic footpath cuts through to the Speke Road bypass 6. St Mary’s Road: The New Slaughterhouse Gallery, now closed 7. Speke Road: The former Baths site, opposite the market which lies derelict and overgrown 8. Church Road: to Under the Bridge

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4a.

Garston Village The conclusion from our analysis of Garston is that it has great potential but it needs to evolve if it is to thrive in the future. We have established that it is a good place to live, both for the existing community and people looking to move in. It has a range of good quality housing including the older stock and the recently built houses. It is affordable and has excellent accessibility so that there is no reason why its population shouldn’t continue to grow and for a broader range of people to make Garston their home. It is however much more than a residential suburb. It will continue to be an important economic centre with a significant amount of economic activity and employment even if it can no longer be assumed that people working in Garston will also live locally.

32 Garston embodies all of the attributes of an Urban Village – a place with a distinctive urban identity, a mix of uses, reasonably high-density housing and its own station and shopping centre, set within Liverpool’s suburbs. It is therefore not surprising that in the 1990s Garston was designated by the Urban Villages Forum (now called the Prince’s Trust) as one of the first Urban Villages in the UK. The plan produced at that time led to the development of the new housing that has been built Under the Bridge and also to the creation of the Garston Urban Village Hall on Bank’s Road.

One of the issues that has been raised as part of our consultation process is the weak image of Garston. On the one hand local people are concerned that the

name Garston is disappearing. It is no longer part of the name of the school or the station and the area is seen too often as a sub-neighbourhood of Speke.

Traffic has been diverted off the high street so that it has become invisible to people who don’t live there. Further more its image to those who do know it is regarded negatively – a declining working class community with a run down high street.

We have discussed the idea of revising the Urban Village brand as a way of countering this weak image. It would send out the message that Garston is rethinking its role, is a distinctive urban place and is a good place to live and work. We have discussed this with local

people and there are different views on this. The area around St. Mary’s Road is already known as the Village and some people don’t want to see this identity diluted. For others the idea of an Urban Village doesn’t really mean very much and it didn’t really catch on when it was suggested in the 1990s.

Our suggestion is therefore that the concept of an urban village be used to guide the strategy but that the branding of the area be as Garston Village. It is important that the two parts of Garston are seen as part of the same place. This feeds into our suggested vision on the following pages.

Prince’s Trust We wondered about reviving the idea of an Urban Village.

Fifteen years ago Garston was one of only a handful of places designated as Urban Villages by the Prince of Wales’ foundation (now called the Prince’s Trust).

This is why the community centre in Under the Bridge is called the Urban Village Hall and it is the basis for the housing development that has taken place in the area (see adjacent plan: note - it’s upside down).

1998

Garston Urban Village Hall which was developed as part of the Garston Urban Village Plan and opened in 1999.

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4b.

A new vision for Garston Village Garston will become a lively urban village focused on a regenerated high street full of small businesses. It will be known as somewhere that has revived its fortunes and become an attractive and affordable place to live for a broad range of people while remaining a strong employment location.

Below are our five masterplan themes, these have been given a code to ease navigation of the masterplan and project list:

LV

A good place to live Aim: To encourage the improvement of the existing housing stock and the

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development of a range of new housing to expand the population and increase local spending power.

To this end the strategy includes proposals for major new housing development on the western part of the dock and the former gas works.

WK

It also includes a scheme to set up a group to organise retrofitting of the existing housing stock to make properties more energy efficient.

A place to do business Aim: To maintain Garston’s role as an affordable location for manufacturing and port related activities as well as encouraging start-up and creative businesses to make the area their base.

The recent success of housing developments in Garston puts pressure on the remaining industrial land to be released for housing. The strategy suggests that this should only be done in specific circumstances, namely when it allows the consolidation and investment in existing industrial uses. The masterplan therefore

allows the release of under-used parts of the port for housing but protects and improves the Blackburne Street industrial areas. The Garston Space Agency also plays an important part in the business strategy, by encouraging new business onto the high street.

EN

A green, well connected neighbourhood Aim:

To create a network of green spaces for recreation and wildlife linked by safe pedestrian and cycle routes.

Garston does not feel like a very green area and is sliced up by the railways and bypass so that it feels very disconnected from its surroundings. The masterplan includes the creation of important new recreational spaces on Dingle Bank and the park on Banks Road, both facilitated by adjacent

HS

housing development. It also includes proposals for improved pedestrian and cycle links through the area including an improved link through the park on Banks Road and improvements to the road and rail bridge on Church Road.

A thriving high street Aim: To revive the high street by attracting a new anchor, consolidating the retail core and diversifying the uses.

The masterplan includes a plan to revive the high street. This includes securing a new anchor store and the consolidation of the retail function around the St. Mary’s Road/Church Road junction. This, we believe, can secure Garston’s position as a sustainable retail centre albeit smaller than it currently is. This begs the question about what to do with the retail units that will no longer be required.

ID

The suggested solution to this is the Garston Space Agency which is essentially a market intervention mechanism to broker relationships between building owners and potential short term tenants. We are not specifying the type of uses that this could attract – it could attract bars and restaurants, design businesses, antique shops etc… The key is to jump-start the market and see what happens.

A distinctive image and strong identity Aim: To capitalise on the regeneration of the area to relaunch its image and to increase its visibility through signage and branding.

The need to change Garston’s image goes alongside the strategy. Some places make the mistake of focussing on branding before the product has changed, which at best achieves a temporary effect. However the converse is also true and there are

places that put a lot of resources into regeneration but fail to tell people about it.

The strategy therefore needs to be linked to a campaign and signage to relaunch Garston Village and to revamp its image.

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4c.

A policy for Garston Village This is our designations map for Garston. It is a simplified version of our masterplan which identifies land for particular uses, which is in line with our list of projects for the wider area. This will be used by the local planning authority to determine what type and scale of development is most appropriate for sites in Garston. It will also be used by developers who are looking to invest in the area, providing guidance on the wider context of the Garston area. The purpose of this plan is to make sure new developments make a positive contribution to Garston Village.

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Land Use

Designation

Port/ Industrial Land

Port/ Industrial Land

Housing/ Open Space

Employment

Housing/ Commercial

Mixed Use development - Residential/ Open Space for Recreation

Housing - New Housing - Existing

Mixed Use development - Residential/ Retail

Leisure/ Open Space

Residential development Mixed Use development - Leisure/ Green Space for Recreation Cycle Corridor Energy Retrofit of Housing Stock Investment in Industrial Estate Facilities Waste Transfer Site

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5a.

A masterplan for Garston Village Here is our illustrative masterplan for Garston Village. It identifies sites and areas for re-development in line with our themes for regeneration. We have drawn housing on various sites to give you an idea of what these areas could look like, but this is by no means a final plan. Each project is discussed in more detail in the next chapter.

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LV01 South Cressington LV02 Banks Road Development Sites LV03 Under the Bridge Improvement Zone LV04 Garston Old Road Improvement Zone LV05 Dingle Bank LV06 Former Market Site WK01 Consolidation of Port WK02 Blackburne Street WK03 Blackburne Street Industrial Estates WK01 Consolidation of Port WK02 Blackburne Street WK03 Blackburne Street Industrial Estates EN01 Dingle Bank Park EN02 Cycle Corridor EN03 Banks Road Development Sites EN04 Under the Bridge Connection EN05 Brunswick Street HS01 Garston Space Agency HS02 Garston Space Agency Office HS03 Temporary Space HS04 Garston Village Anchor HS05 Garston Village Market HS06 St Mary’s Road Streetscape HS07 Former Baths Site HS08 Former Bingo Hall HS09 Former Coop Store ID01 Garston Village Identity Art/ Signage ID02 Gateway Signage A ID03 Gateway Signage B ID04 Gateway Signage C

Reference Code LV LIVE WK WORK EN ENVIRONMENT HS ID

HIGH STREET IDENTITY

Theme A good place to live A place to do business A green, well connected neighbourhood A thriving high street A distinctive image and strong identity

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5b.

A good place to live Aim: To encourage the improvement of the existing housing stock and the development of a range of new housing to expand the population and increase local spending power.

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Garston has a good stock of existing housing. The predominantly Victorian terrace housing in the area has been complimented by the recent Cressington Heath and Lovells developments which offer a mix of detached and semidetached properties. The main aims of the masterplan are to continue to improve the existing housing stock and to provide more opportunities for new housing development.

New Housing

Infill Sites

Within the masterplan, two main development sites have been identified, the western part of the docks area and the former gas works on Banks Road.

Together these have the potential to provide in excess of 1,000 new homes in Garston. This will increase the number of people living within walking distance of St Mary’s Road and therefore the catchment area and spending power available to the shops. The housing development may also allow investment in the area through planning contributions, the new homes bonus or capital receipts.

Projects for development opposite the St Michaels on Church Road and on the former market site on Island Road will see vacant land utilised - providing a new mixed use development and new housing respectively.

Terraced housing in Garston

Examples of new housing

Each proposed project is described in more detail over the next pages.

LV04

LV06

LV05 LV01

LV02

43 PROJECTS LV01 South Cressington Mixed Use residential led development. Access via Cressington Heath and Dock Road LV02 Banks Road Development Sites Mixed Use residential development on the Gas works site to fund park on adjacent site, and conservation of local wildlife areas LV03 Under the Bridge Improvement Zone Investment into energy efficiency of existing housing stock with focus on hard to treat properties LV04 Garston Old Road Improvement Zone Investment into energy efficiency of existing housing stock within the Village neighbourhood LV05 Dingle Bank Mixed Use - residential/ leisure/ recreation development with active frontage onto Church Road LV06 Former Market Site Residential Development of 8-12 houses

LV03

LV01

South Cressington

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This scheme relates to the western part of the docks which is under-used and which could, in our view be released for housing.

The Cressington Heath scheme has been designed to allow this area to be developed for housing and the main access could be through this scheme.

In order to deliver a significant number of homes as currently proposed, the access requirement will need to be reviewed.

The scheme is seen as a medium to high

density mixed-use housing scheme with a few apartments and a landscape buffer to the west and the Liverpool SHLAA identifies that the site could provide up to 718 new homes. There would be value in a physical connection to Cressington although we appreciate that this would be opposed by the residents there. The scheme could include recreational use of the basin although a marina would not be possible because the remaining basins will remain in use.

LV02

Banks Road + Park

Garston has for years been dominated by the gas works immediately to the rear of St. Michael’s Church. National Grid no longer requires most of this site and have started to consider development options.

There is some affection for the two gas holders, however they dominate views of the historic church tower and our view is that they should be removed.

To the east of this is a former industrial site which has been reclaimed by nature.

A local group has been campaigning for this to be developed as an ecological park. The site is designated in the South Liverpool Regeneration Framework as a site for housing and public open space, but has a status in planning policy as a site of local nature importance. There have been moves by local people to apply for funding to create the park but funding sources have yet to be identified.

As part of this study the City Council has commissioned survey work on the this land and identified the areas of

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greatest importance. As a result of this the masterplan shows a housing scheme on the gas works and the northern part of the adjacent site. Part of the value created by the development can then be invested into the creation of a park and protection of important nature areas.

The scheme is based on an urban design analysis of the surrounding area. The two main roads within the scheme are oriented to frame views of the church and the northern road also frames a vista to the water tower on the Matchworks.

At the western end of the scheme the layout incorporates an extended church yard to give an appropriate setting for the church.

The park is designed as a publicly accessible green area with a play space but with large areas that are fenced off and left for nature, to enhance biodiversity. The scheme includes a row of houses along the eastern side of the park to create a frontage onto the park and surveillance, to improve safety.

Crucially the layout of the park creates a link through to Speke Road. While this cannot be a road link, it will be a highly visible pedestrian connection and the new housing will also create a frontage onto Speke Road. This significance is that the Under the Bridge area would no longer be under the bridge but would marry with Speke Road and open up the area.

LV03

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Eco Retrofit

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Alley gating

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CASE STUDY: Carbon Coop

Gap sites

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Community facilities

Tree planting

Home zones

As part of the masterplan we have considered a number of options for the improvement of the terraced housing areas as illustrated on the image above. These included environmental works such as home zones, tree planting or alley gating and improvements to housing through refurbishment, infill or energy retrofit.

All of these initiatives would be valuable. However given the pressure of funding and our findings about the relative stability of the housing market we find it difficult to justify significant expenditure. The proposal is therefore to focus on energy retrofit. This has the advantage of addressing fuel poverty, increasing internal comfort, improving the condition of the housing and of course saving the planet. The work can also potentially by funded through the Government’s Green Deal programme. This is designed to allow

works to be funded through finance repaid through savings in utility bills.

This should mean that there is no increase in household costs and the scheme is designed so that the loan attaches to the property so that the loan is sold with the house.

The housing stock in Garston is largely privately owned, both owner occupied and private rented. However South Liverpool Homes and the Liverpool Housing Trust also own significant numbers of properties and we see potential for them to help coordinate the initiative.

We are suggesting a model based on the Carbon Coop that URBED has helped to set up in Manchester. The Carbon Coop is a cooperative of households who come together to jointly commission work thereby sharing experience and benefiting from bulk purchasing.

The Carbon Cooperative has a membership of around 45 households who are all interested in retrofitting their homes. A contract for the first 13 homes has just been let using Green Deal Go Early finance.

The single contract allows the houses to benefit from bulk purchasing and economies of scale. Each property is being designed to achieve an 80% reduction in CO2 emissions and the average cost is just over ÂŁ20,000. The initial pilot is being used to create a handbook of standard details so that in future the process can be scaled to hundreds if not thousands of units. This has attracted a lot of attention from the Government and there is interest in rolling the model out in other locations to create momentum for the Green Deal programme.

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New Residential Development

LV05 Dingle Bank There are a number of sites in Garston which are currently vacant, and doing little to enhance the streetscape.

The site opposite St Michaels Church on Church Road, Under the Bridge has the potential to be re-developed. The site was sold by the council as part of the Lovells housing development, but may not be appropriate for detached houses due to an underlying water course.

To overcome this, a building with a larger footprint may be more viable and could be developed on the site, to tackle the ground conditions in one go.

There is an opportunity for the development to provide a leisure and/ or residential facility, and a building fronting onto the road here, could strengthen the perception of a connection between the Village and Under the Bridge. Having a development here could also make the area feel safer as the building will overlook onto the street.

Dingle Bank lower bank -Church Road

47 LV06 Former Market Site The former market site is currently lying empty and has the potential to provide 8-12 residential properties, continuing the housing frontage along Island Road South. The site is council owned and has the potential to cross fund the Garston Space Agency, which we will discuss in section 5d.

Former Market Site - Island Road South Examples of housing styles which could work well in Garston and enhance the street.

5c.

A place to do business Aim: To maintain Garston’s role as an affordable location for businesses and port related activities as well as encouraging start-up and creative businesses to make the area their base.

Garston grew up as an employment area because of the port. As the old maps show it was a major train and shipment point between sea going vessels and the railways. The port generated a range of spin off industries and the legacy of these remain part of the area today.

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However, currently the port no longer uses the rail head, nor the Freightliner terminal uses the port. Similarly most of the other industry in the area has no connection with either the port or rail head and so remains in Garston for largely historic reasons.

As part of this study we have spoken to all of the large employers in the area as well as to the owners of the industrial estates. As we have said they are now doing reasonably well after some difficult years and have long term plans to stay in the area.

With the smaller scale industrial uses there has been some pressure to reallocate land for more valuable housing development. This is an issue that we have considered carefully as part of the study. There is an argument that over time the industry should be encouraged to move into more modern premises nearby. However on balance we have come to the view that Garston should retain significant areas of employment for the following reasons: • If too much housing is allowed there could be conflicts with lorry movements, noise etc... which could harm the larger businesses.

• Garston fulfils an important role in the provision of low cost workspace for small companies that would be difficult to replicate in new premises.

• The character of an urban village includes a mix of housing and employment which reduces commuting distances and makes the area more lively.

The strategy is therefore based on the strategic release of surplus land for housing but thereafter the protection and enhancement of the employment base of the area.

Each proposed project is described in more detail over the next pages.

WK01

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WK03

PROJECTS WK01 Consolidation of Port Consolidation of Port facilities and activities onto and around Stalbridge and Old Dock.

WK02 Blackburne Street Environment improvements along Blackburne Street to improve public realm WK03 Blackburne Street Industrial Estates Retain designation as light industrial to safeguard site for light industrial uses and employment

WK02

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Consolidation of the port

As the photograph below shows, Garston Port was once a major rail operation with a high level system of tracks, marshalling yards and sidings. Now that the port no longer uses the rail system it needs far less land, even in a situation where its trade is expanding. The Port have therefore been exploring the consolidation of their operations.

The first step in this process was the sale of land to Redrow Homes who have built the Cressington Heath Estate. This was always intended to be the first phase of a process that could release a large area of land to the west of the port for housing stretching from Garston Way to the North Dock basin. The relocation of a number of sheds in these areas, possibly upon expiry of their current lease terms, would allow the port to consolidate around the two

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WK02

Blackburne Street

Blackburne Street is the main focus for smallscale, affordable workspace. The street itself is unattractive, hemmed in with tall walls. As described on the next page the strategy takes the view that this area should be retained and improved for industry. One of the ways to do this will be to improve the environment of Blackburne Street. This could include: • Improved lighting

main basins and potentially decommission the North Dock from port-related use to provide the opportunity for leisure and residential uses.

• Street Trees

There is a further site to the north of the current dock and in the ownership of the port, known locally as the Jack Allen site, or more formally as the land adjacent to Stalbridge link road. This was subject to a long planning battle in which the planning authority resisted a planning application for a waste transfer station. This was eventually approved on appeal and subsequently the council allocated the land in the Merseyside Waste Core Strategy. It is our view that such a use would not be positive for Garston and would make other parts of this strategy more difficult to implement. A better use would be as an expansion area for future dock uses.

• Design guidance for new development to face onto the street.

• On street parking

Wildspace, Essex, Alison Brooks Architects

WK03

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Blackburne Industrial Estate

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The industrial estates on either side of Blackburne Street occupy the remnants of the salt works pictured to the left that once stood on the site.

Unfortunately little of this remains today and the area is characterised by a mix of relatively low grade industrial premises. There are however some well established employers in the area including Graham’s Cartons which manufactures cardboard boxes and Veolia who have their national adhesive distillery in the area and are planning 342000 to invest in a CHP plant.

Of the rest of the area, some are well occupied, while other parts have significant levels of vacancy.

There has been pressure from land owners to release the land north of Blackburne Street for housing development. However we have concluded that this should not happen for the following reasons:

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384000

• It was not supported by the second round consultation where we showed alternative housing and industrial layouts for the area.

• The lack of demand for this space is not proven and is contradicted by the levels of occupation of the space south of Blackburne Street.

HSE Consultation Zones • Much of the area falls within the Health and Safety Albion Chemicals, ZoneKing around the Veolia plant (left). The Health and Street, Safety Executive have indicated that they would Garston, Liverpool L19 8EG not support sensitive uses within the Middle Zone (MZ).

HSE HID CI5 Ref: H3762 • The harm the ongoing viability of the Gridhousing Ref: SJcould 400 836 remaining industry.

Approved by HSE - 30/11/2006 opens up the possibility of the tannery moving GISThis Conversion - September 2007 back into the area. The former tannery site at the This map supersedes all and King Street is still corner of Blackburne Street previous or undated maps owned by the company that used to operate it. They have major contracts IZ = 1800 tdu with the automotive sector and MZto=move 1.0 cpm are keen back into the area, something that OZ = 0.3 cpm this strategy would encourage.

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Crown Copyright, all rights reserved, HSE 100021025 (2007) 339000

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5d.

A green, well connected neighbourhood Aim: To create a network of green spaces for recreation and wildlife linked by safe pedestrian and cycle routes.

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Garston does not feel like a very green place. The main two greenspaces within Garston at present are the Long Lane Recreation Ground to the north and the Coastal Reserve to the south, neither of which are particularly well-connected to or visible from Garston. One of the messages to come from the consultation was that people wanted more greenery and recreational space, particularly for young people.

The strategy therefore proposes two new green spaces within Garston: The development of Dingle Bank as a leisure area to include a park and a skate park and the development of a park on Banks Road.

The strategy also seeks to increase the connectivity of Garston by improving links through the area and in particular overcoming the barrier created by the bridges. The latter includes environmental improvements to Church Road and also a green link through the Park to Speke Road. These projects are an important part of the new image and brand for Garston Village.

Each proposed project is described in more detail over the next pages.

EN02

EN04

EN01 EN03

PROJECTS EN01 Dingle Bank Park Open space to provide buffer from existing residential development and the Port. Potential site for leisure area to include skate park.

EN02 Cycle Corridor Improved cycle connection from Liverpool South Parkway to Coastal Reserve EN03 Banks Road Development Sites New residential development on National Grid site and adjacent LCC owned land to include a significant area of new and improved public open space EN04 Under the Bridge Connection Environmental improvement project to improve pedestrian and cyclist experience under the bridge Improvement to linkages to create gateway feature.

EN05 Brunswick Street Improvements to streetscape and access

EN05

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EN01

Dingle Bank

EN02

EN04

EN05

Walking and Cycling Improvements Cycling offers a great way to get around Garston. Not only is it a sustainable mode of transport but it provides numerous health benefits and doesn’t pollute the area. At present there is an off-road segregated cycle lane along Speke Road, which takes cyclists from Horrocks Avenue to the New Mersey Shopping park and Speke Commerce Parks.

We are suggesting a second safe and pleasant connection through the centre of Garston, to encourage cycling and let cyclists fully experience what the future Garston will have to offer - as they travel past the new leisure facility on Dingle Bank and the new housing and park on Bank’s Road.

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Dingle Bank is an area of elevated council-owned land next to the port and Freightliner depot. There have been plans in the past to allocate this site for housing. However we have moved away from this because of the views of the port who see the site as an important buffer between its activities and adjacent housing. There is also the possibility of contamination and the blight caused by the possible use of the adjacent site as a waste depot.

For these reasons we have suggested that the site be developed for recreational use. There is a current initiative by the Mayor to fund three skate park facilities in the North, East and South of the City and Dingle Bank has been identified as a possible site by a group of young people looking to run and manage the skate park. We believe that this would be an excellent use for the site.

It would provide facilities for young people and provide funding to bring the whole of the site back into use. The skate park could occupy part of the site, the remainder being used for other recreational uses.

An assessment will be carried out to identify the appropriate infrastructure for the area, but we have shown two routes for this masterplan, one along Bank’s Road and another along King Street and Blackburne Street. The aim of these routes will be to link up Liverpool South Parkway with the employment areas and the coastal reserve, to encourage people to cycle to work but also for leisure.

Cycling infrastructure will be put in place along the chosen route and measures could include signage to key destinations in Garston, Advanced Stop Lines (ASLs) at the St Mary’s Road/ Church Road junction and on-road cycle lanes, where appropriate.

EN04 Under the Bridge Connection These improvements will be in line with the project to enhance the environment under the bridge on Church Road, to make the journey more pleasant for cyclists and pedestrians. This could involve anything from painting the underside of the bridges to providing and enhanced lighting scheme to make it feel safer.

Advanced Stop Lines: This drawing shows how cyclists could be prioritised at the St Mary’s Road/ Church Road junction. This makes it safer for cyclists at the junction, with the aim to encourage more people to cycle.

The route can be advertised with signage, making people more aware of how they can get to the coastal reserve or Blackburne Industrial Estate.

EN05 Brunswick Street Improvements A project has already been identified to provide improvements to coastal reserve access points on Brunswick Street.

These will include welcome signage to the coastal reserve, refurbishment of access control gate, a new knee rail, remodelled grass verge and thinning of trees bordering the allotments.

EN03

Bank’s Road Park Off Banks Road there is a former industrial site which has been reclaimed by nature. This is recognised in the local plan as a site of local nature conservation interest. As part of the consultations local people have made clear their desire to see this area developed as an Eco-park. They have in the past submitted a lottery bid to develop this but without success.

A survey of the site was undertaken in 2006/7 and a further survey has been done as part of this study. This found that the extent and variety of habitats had declined overall. It did however suggest that there were species-rich areas of unimproved neutral grassland, (see diagram below) in the southern and central area of the site that should

Tall Ruderal (Grass species) Standing Water Woodland Unimproved Neutral Grassland Bare Ground Dense Scrub Scattered Scrub Site 2 Boundary

Figure A1.2 Phase 1 Habitat Survey Plan for Site 2.

be retained and enhanced with pond creation and scrub clearance, alongside other works to increase biodiversity.

The plan therefore envisages developing a natural area of greenspace as part of the housing development proposed on the adjacent Gas Works. This would extend onto the northern part of the site and create a frontage to the east, allowing a large area of green space to be created. This would mix public access with fenced-off habitat areas.

The housing would enable the open space to be funded and is in our view the only option for making this happen.

The green space also creates an important link to Speke Road that would help to open up the Under the Bridge area.

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5e.

A thriving high street Aim: To revive the high street by attracting a new anchor, consolidating the retail core and diversifying the uses.

As we have suggested in our analysis the state of St. Mary’s road needs to be the main priority of this strategy. It is the one part of Garston that is in a critical state and where there is a risk of further deterioration. The strategy therefore includes a comprehensive programme of action to revive the street.

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This draws on both URBED’s original work for the Government on Vital and Viable Town Centres in the 1990s and the more recent Portas Review. The former established the ‘four A’s framework to assess the health of town centres. This was based on the need to have Attractions that draw people in to a centre, the need to make centres Accessible by car and public transport, to ensure the Amenity of the environment is pleasant and welcoming and to create mechanisms to allow Action to be taken by local people.

The Portas review added to this to show how town centres could evolve in time of recession and an era of out-of-town and internet shopping. She suggested ides like work-shops where units can be used for small business and a new post office for internet deliveries.

Our approach, as set out in the following pages is to use this framework to create a comprehensive strategy for the high street.

The main elements of this are to secure a new small supermarket to provide an attraction to anchor the centre following the loss of the Cooperative store. This is linked to proposals to consolidate the centre and to create a market mechanism to encourage small businesses to occupy vacant shops units.

Access is to be improved through enhancing pedestrian and cycling infrastructure, as suggested in the previous section and by providing more parking. The amenity of the centre is to be improved through environmental enhancements, planned on the market site. Finally we are suggesting a new agency to allow locally focussed action to be taken to regenerate the area.

“Work-Shops”

The new “Town Team” town hall

“The New Post Office”

“Community Chest”

HS06 HS03

HS08

HS02

PROJECTS HS01 Gasrton Space Agency Identify potential user for vacant building.

HS02 Garston Space Agency Office The first project of the Space Agency. A temporary office / hub to be located in vacant shop units on St Mary’s Road HS03 Temporary Space Space Agency to set up tem-porary cultural/arts space on site of demolished buildings HS04 Garston Village Anchor Development of retail anchor to eastern end of Garston Village.

HS05 Garston Village Market Re-arrangement of Market layout to improve visual appearance and pedestrian flows through the market.

HS06 St Mary’s Road Streetscape Re-alignment of carriage way to transform pedestrian environment and improve image of the high street.

HS07 Former Baths Site Mixed Use development with active frontage onto Speke Road.

HS08 Former Bingo Hall Identify potential user for vacant building.

HS09 Former Coop Store Identify future occupier for coop store.

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HS01

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In the recent recession there has been a great deal of interest in pop-up shops and meanwhile uses as ways of using vacant space. A central part of our strategy is a proposal for an agency in Garston that can promote these type of uses as a way of bringing vacant shops back into use.

This is based on our analysis that St. Mary’s road is too large as a shopping centre. Given modern retail trends there will never be sufficient demand from traditional retailing to fill all of the shops on the high street. It is therefore sensible to consolidate the high street into a more compact area around the junction with Church Street. This however begs the question of what we should do with the shop units that are surplus to requirements.

This is not just a case of demolishing the shops outside this core area. For one thing there are good businesses operating outside core which we would want to retain.

Demolition would require CPO powers and would be costly and after all of that would leave an unsightly cleared site that would not improve the attractions of the street. In other areas shop units have been converted to housing, which is a possibility but can often look awkward.

Our suggestion is therefore that the high street be promoted as a series of small business spaces. If the units can be made cheap enough then there are a range of small businesses in south Liverpool who could be attracted. These may be retail businesses but may equally be small scale workshops, design companies, pop up cafes and bars or digital consultancies...who are all looking for affordable space.

The Liverpool Fairy Cake Company which operates

CASE STUDY: Pop-up Space

on St. Mary’s Road is a good example of this type of business. They use the unit as a bakery and sell mostly on line so that even though they have a shop front they are not reliant on footfall.

In our consultations some people have suggested that we are seeking to create a street of ‘funky’ craft shops and cafes that is not very Garston. The point of the strategy however is that we don’t know what the street might become. Levenshulme in Manchester has become a centre for antique furniture, Lark Lane in nearby Aigburth has become a cafe quarter, other places have specialised in second hand books, environmental business etc. The point is to create the conditions for people to move into the area and then see what happens.

The Garston Space Agency is the mechanism to create these conditions. The problems of vacancy on many high streets are as much to do with the leasehold arrangements of the property as it is with lack of demand. The Cooperative, for example, despite having pulled out of the high street are committed to paying the rent on their unit for the duration of their lease.

Elsewhere owners insist on long leases, but can only accept market rents.

The Space Agency is designed to be an intermediary between these landlords and potential tenants. The agency would initially negotiate with a set of landlords to take over their property rent free for two years. This could be a good deal for the landlord given that they would be unlikely to rent the property in that period, the Space Agency would cover their rates bill and carry out basic repairs so that at the end of the period the property would be more valuable and Let-able.

The Space Agency would meanwhile do basic repairs (fix the roof, make sure the heating works etc...) and let the space to small business. To achieve this the rents would need to be lowered to the point where the deal would be attractive (even if this was as little as £1/foot). The key is to get the space occupied and to start generating activity. Once this happens then value will be created and once values start to rise the corner will have been turned and the regeneration of the high street will be underway.

The Space Agency is therefore a loss leader and will need a budget and staffing. The resources needed will be in the hundreds of thousands of pounds, compared to the £6M estimated for a similar initiative a few years ago. This is therefore very good value for money even if the Space Agency makes no money at all. However to create a sustainable ongoing regeneration vehicle for the area the Space Agency should create a situation where it can benefit from rising values. To do this it needs to own property and our suggestion is that the site recently acquired by the council on Sidwell Street together with any vacant shop units in LCC ownership, be transferred to the Space Agency.

The picture below shows the opening of a scheme of 8 shops at Queens Parade in Willesden Green in London. The group Meanwhile Space negotiated a rent free lease with the landlords just as we are suggesting here and secured retail tenants for the space. Within a year it had been voted by readers of Time out as one of their nine best shopping locations in London. Meanwhile space have worked on a number of schemes such as this and their web site www.meanwhilespace.com has information for landlords and tenants as well as model leases.

Pop-up people are another agency that promotes meanwhile uses across the country and provide advice and networking for agencies and tenants www.artistsandmakers.com.

It could be argued that such models are better suited to London where the market is stronger than Garston. It is however more difficult to persuade landlords to get involved where the market is strong and the competition for alternative spaces is so much greater. There is therefore no reason why this should not be successful in Garston.

The Sidwell Street site could potentially be developed by the Agency as its base with pop-up buildings to be let to small companies. The precedent for this is Gabriels Wharf pictured above left in London where a series of craft shops and cafes have been created in concrete double garages for very little capital costs but have been trading profitably now for 20 years.

In this way it is hoped that the Agency can generate an ongoing revenue stream to become self sustaining.

Once this is achieved there are other initiatives such as the Custom-build housing or the skate park hub, that it

Dan Thompson Febuary 2012

We can do

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HS04

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Retail Anchor

The other part of the strategy is to revive a consolidated retail centre. In doing this it is important to recognise that there are two types of shops in any centre; those that pull people in (and therefore anchor the centre), and those that feed off the footfall passing their unit. No matter how good they are, the latter will not survive long in a centre that has lost its anchor. In the current market the anchor is generally a supermarket and it is therefore particularly worrying that the Cooperative recently pulled out of their unit on the high street. While there is a small Asda at the northern end of the centre it is vital that the core of the shopping centre be anchored and to that end we have been working though the study to secure a replacement supermarket.

We have looked at three possible sites for this, the former Cooperative Store, The former Baths Site and the site on the corner of Speke Road and Horrocks Avenue. It is clear from discussions with retailers that they need a site that is visible from Garston Way on a left turn for traffic travelling out of town.

The Coop and Baths sites do not work in this respect and are in any case slightly too small.

The only option is therefore the third site which will involve some site acquisitions and relocations. We are confident that there is an operator who would be willing to build on this site if it can be secured, which is what we are showing in the masterplan. This we believe is vital to the health of the centre.

HS05

Market

The other attractor for the shopping centre is the market which has around 50 stalls and operates every Friday. This is a surprisingly large and successful market given the problems being experienced elsewhere on the high street.

There have been suggestions that we should move the market onto St. Mary’s Road, and increase the number of days that it operates. These ideas need to be treated with caution because markets are fragile and our view is that relocation would be risky. The traders come to market as part of a circuit so a full time market is also unlikely. However in consultation with the traders and the markets department it might be possible to go to two days a week.

Our suggestions for the market therefore involve only minor tinkering. There is a need to do some works to the public realm around the market because the trees have outgrown their tree guards. As part of this it would be worth imposing a little more organisation on the market, parking the vans less obtrusively and reducing the gaps between stalls. Parking on market days is also an issue and alternative sites need to be identified to allow those getting to the market by car to park close by.

HS06

St Mary’s Road

One of the problems with St. Mary’s Road is that it is still configured as it was before the construction of the Garston Way when all of the south Liverpool traffic passed through the centre. Today it carries a number of busy bus routes but much less traffic. This provides an opportunity to change the configuration of the road, widening the pavements and introducing seating and street trees.

There are however a number of problems with this. The first is that this type of work is very expensive, difficult to fund in the current climate and, in any case is unlikely to work while so many shops remain vacant. Our proposal is therefore to undertake a temporary scheme in tandem with the first year of the Garston Space Agency. There are many examples of road improvements being

done with paint (as in the example from New York below). This can have an instant impact but is also reversible. As part of this trees can be provided in planters and space can be created for tables and chairs outside cafes, reclaiming the street from vehicles.

either end of the works would be a shared space shown in pink on the plan, to mark the arrival into the improved section of street. These plans have been discussed with Liverpool Highways department and while there are a number of issues to address they should be possible to agree.

This is a cost effective way of having an immediate impact and should be coordinated Together with an improved cycle route through with a street festival to launch the Garston Space the St Marys Road/ Church Road junction, this Agency and to relaunch St. Mary’s Road as a should help to encourage people to walk and business location. cycle to the high street rather than use their cars.

The technical plan below has been created by our highways consultants Fore. It shows alternate pavement build-outs while maintaining N a carriageway wide enough for the buses. At

More cycle parking will also need to be provided on the high street to facilitate those who are cycling.

Notes

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Paint road as temporary gateway

Existing Bus Stop retained

1.28m kerb buildout

Paint road as temporary gateway

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Existing pedestrian crossing and speed table requiring alteration to layout Existing Bus Stop retained

Existing pedestrian crossing and speed table requiring alteration to layout

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Above: St Mary’s Road in the early 1900s

1.47m kerb buildout

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Fore Con 2 Queen Leeds LS1 2TW

Existing speed cushions 1.40m kerb buildout

1.40m kerb buildout Fore Consulting Limited 2 Queen Street Leeds LS1 2TW

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0113 380 0250 enquiries@foreconsulting.co.uk www.foreconsulting.co.uk Existing Bus Stop retained BU STOP S

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1.40m kerb buildout 1.13m kerb buildout

0113 380 enquirie www.for

Client:

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Garston Masterplan

Liverpool City Council

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Existing speed table requiring alteration BU STOP S

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Garston Masterplan

Existing Bus Stop retained

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Paint road as temporary gateway

Potential Highway Improvements, St Marys Road, 2.0m radius Garston kerb buildouts

Paint road as temporary gateway

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Existing speed table © 2013 Fore Consulting requiring alteration

Potential Highway Improv 2.0m radius Garston kerb buildouts

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St Mary’s Road continued...

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Former Baths Site

Temporary tree planters which could be used on St Mary’s Road

62 Street decorations at Gracia festival, Barcelona.

Garston could hold a street festival/ carnival once the road improvements are completed. This could coincide with the opening of the Space Agency.

The former Baths site on Speke Road provides an opportunity for mixeduse residential development which fronts onto the street. At the moment, the site is an eyesore and further increases the sense of deprivation on the High Street. There was previously a planning consent for apartments & 5 retail units on the site, and it is envisioned that a new development on the site will provide a similar mix. The development should continue the row of apartments and retail units along Speke Road to provide a uniform frontage.

HS08

Former Bingo Hall

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Former Coop Store

63 The loss of the Cooperative store was particularly significant for St Mary’s Road as the high street lost its anchor, and this has had an affect on footfall, witnessed by shops further down the high street.

As discussed previously, it is unlikely that the store will attract any of the commercial supermarkets, as it is located too far away from the left hand turn off, from Garston Way, which these supermarkets will require.

Therefore it will be important to attract another type of retailer to bring activity and an animated shop front back to the high street.

The potential to move the market into the empty space was discussed, but previous research has highlighted that Markets are very fragile and indoor markets often struggle.

The former Bingo Hall, is another empty building in Garston. The building lies in a prominent site opposite the new South Liverpool NHS Treatment centre and having the building occupied would immediately enhance the cross roads at Woolton Road and Church Road.

There has been previous interest in using the building for religious uses or residential conversion such as flats or apartments. This project needs further discussion with the landowner to bring forward.

As the car park has remained open, this has provided parking spaces for people visiting the high street. Further research will need to take place with regard to parking to identify alternative sites, but also look toward encouraging people to walk to the high street.

5f.

A distinctive image and strong identity Aim: To capitalise on the regeneration of the area to relaunch its image and to increase its visibility through signage and branding.

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One of Garston’s problems is that it has become invisible. People bypassing the centre on Garston Way no longer see the centre and its name is disappearing, it hasn’t been included for example in the name of the station and the new academy. The strategy therefore needs to include an image and branding initiative to relaunch Garston and to highlight the fact that it has turned a corner and is on the road to recovery.

The first element of this is the name.

As we described in Section 4a our view is that the brand should be Garston Village. The next step will be to develop a visual brand (which will be beyond the scope of this study). The image to the right shows a brand developed by URBED and United Creatives for Widnes.

The branding will have a range of uses on printed material, web sites and advertisements and can be linked to the Space Agency. Our suggestion is that it is also used on signage for the centre.

This needs to be striking and to express the idea that Garston has changed.

The image on the next page is from the

German artist Aram Bartholl based on Google Maps place markers which gives an impression of the feel that Garston should seek to achieve.

There is also the possibility of a major artwork/sign along Garston Way. This would be large enough to be legible to motorists passing at 40mph and would become a local landmark for people travelling to and from the airport.

This could be funded through ‘Crowdfunding’ which involves setting a budget and creating an online campaign then inviting people to donate towards the scheme, with money matched by LCC. Events Holding a Carnival and setting up a programme of events which run through the year, organised with retailers, the market and the Garston Space Agency could be very valuable for the area.

Once the temporary changes to the road are in place (project HS06) the once annual ‘Garston Carnival’ could be revived bringing a parade of floats back onto St Mary’s Road.

PROJECTS ID01 Garston Village Identity Art/ Signange A bespoke piece of art or signage on Garston Way bypass to mark Garston as a destination ID02 Gateway Signage A Improved road signage approaching Garston Village at Garston Way, St Mary’s Road junction.

ID01

ID03 Gateway Signage B Improved road signage approaching Garston Village at Horrocks Avenue, Woolton Road junction.

ID04 Gateway Signage C Improved road signage approaching Garston Village at Speke Road, Horrocks Avenue junction. Potential to link to Project 7: Speke Road Anchor.

ID03

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6a.

Delivery Framework This masterplan will see significant change in the Garston area. Investment from the public sector will have the potential to unlock up to £109 million of private investment in new development. The most significant outputs will be in excess of 1,000 new dwellings, 4,600 sq m new retail space and 62,000 sq m of improvements to the public realm. In addition 2 km of enhanced cycle routes will be provided.

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Through this investment, the linkages between Garston Village and Garston Under the Bridge will be significantly enhanced, the choice of housing will be widened for existing residents and new residents will be attracted to the area.

The retail offer will be greatly enhanced at first with ‘pop up’ shops and then increasingly by new development and enhancements to St Mary’s Road to provide a new vibrant hub for the community.

In order to achieve these benefits it will be important for LCC to continue to take the lead in driving forward the implementation of the projects in the attached table. This will involve coordinating activity by the Council and acting in an enabling role to facilitate developments by others.

We would suggest that a small team is established with representation from economic development, housing, planning and highways which can monitor progress and take key decisions to ensure that the pace achieved during the preparation of the masterplan is

retained during delivery. We suggest meetings every 6 weeks with key individuals who have power to act within their departments to unblock any issues likely to hold up implementation of the plan.

The masterplan is designed to change the face of Garston over a 10 – 15 year period. Some projects such as new housing and retail development will be dependent on the pace of the property market. The Council needs to work closely with landowner and developers and be in a position to move promptly when these are brought forward.

The Council can however take the following immediate actions to kickstart implementation and demonstrate commitment to local residents: 1. Allocate S106 funding from new development and any other small funding pots to projects to enhance the environment under the bridge: Future S106 contributions from development in Garston Village should be applied to environmental projects

in the masterplan, the time scale is uncertain at this stage.

We would therefore advise LCC to 68 identify any other small funds within the Council budgets including those controlled by the Mayor so that priority projects identified can be implemented at an early date to demonstrate commitment to local residents.

2. Appoint an external agency to develop and manage the Garston Space Agency LCC is progressing the appointment of an external agency to manage the Garston Space Agency. This is a critical project in the short term to start to improve the profile and change the nature and vibrancy of St Mary’s Road.

A programme of developing 5 retail units with new uses (temporary or permanent) in the first year and 10 units in the subsequent 2 years will create this dynamism. It is also expected that the Agency will develop an office/hub in one of the vacant units on St Marys Rd.

3. Facilitate the development of key sites by: • Provision of a new anchor retail store at the eastern end of the high street: Whilst the closure in early 2013 of the Coop store was a negative sign for Garston, we believe that St Mary’s Road can support and indeed needs two retail anchors. Retailers have, in the medium term, indicated an interest for this.

We have considered several locations including the former Coop store, the former Bath site and land at the east end of St Mary’s Road. We believe the latter is the better location, anchoring the eastern end of St Mary’s Road, like ASDA at the western end, and in a clearly visible location from Speke Road.

The site is already a retail location. The main implementation requirement is land assembly. The Council may need to facilitate these discussions.

• Developing Dingle Bank as a skate park with associated leisure or retail development The development of Dingle Bank is an immediate priority as this will serve to start to improve the connections between the two parts of Garston on either side of the bridge. A leisure facility

linked to the development of a new skate park hub will provide the necessary buffer between new housing and the port and help to achieve the linkages required.

A team is currently putting together a bid document and business/ management plan for the skate park facility. The successful bid could receive potential funding from LCC as part of a pledge to develop a skate park facility in South Liverpool.

• Unlocking the National Grid site for housing development (LV02): This site of 4.6 ha is a prime site for new residential development strategically located close to the high street on the ‘Under the Bridge’ side of Garston and providing the opportunity to create much improved linkages between the two parts of the Garston area.

The Council needs to commence work immediately with the landowners, National Grid, to progress the demolition and decontamination on the site (assumed this will be achieved by 2019).

Thereafter, the site should be promoted for new housing development with the potential to provide up to 161 new homes, a mix of 2,3 and 4 bed houses.

• Progressing the park and related new housing development on site LV02/ EN03: As this site is in Council ownership, development can progress more quickly with an assumed start on site for residential development in 2015.

The council will look to work alongside National Grid to bring forward development of the adjacent sites in unison.

Following the Habitats Survey, undertaken in 2013, the land of highest nature conservation value will be protected from development. Land will also be designated around this to provide a park and recreational open space for existing and new residents.

A green corridor to the land around the railway line and bridge will be retained to maximise wildlife movement through the site.

The park and housing development need to be implemented simultaneously to ensure that local residents continue to support the project and to capitalise on the potential to secure S106 funding from the residential development, which will fund the open space and management of the area of conservation value.

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Projects Map: The plan identifies areas which relate to the proposed projects for the area.

6b.

Funding A number of potential funding sources have been identified. One of the key outcomes of the masterplan will be for LCC to give these projects a high priority within Council budgets and to ensure that all sources of funding which are generated through development in the area are applied to projects in Garston Village. Potential funding from alternative sources are identified on the next page.

S106 planning obligation funding There could potentially be approximately £1,000 per unit of S106 funding arising from new development in the Garston ward as a result of this masterplan.

This is likely to amount to £284k (the majority from development of the Bank’s Road sites) over the life time of the development, estimated to start in 2018 over the subsequent 11 years. This could be used for environmental projects as identified in the action plan.

Community Infrastructure Levy Although this funding source cannot be ruled out, it is very unlikely that there will be any funding available from Community Infrastructure Levy for the Garston area in the short to medium term. LCC has not yet adopted a CIL framework and officers consider it unlikely that any funding would become available from this source for the relatively deprived Speke/Garston ward.

New Homes Bonus New Homes Bonus of approximately £2k per unit per annum will accrue to the Council from development in the Garston area up to 2015. Depending on how quickly development progresses, this could lead to a total of up to £300k,

but timescales may rule this out. In any event, NHB will be allocated to LCC General Fund and not likely to be available for projects in Garston.

ECO Funding for Housing Stock Improvement Funding for housing stock improvements both Under the Bridge and in the Village can be accessed from the ECO commitment funding available from energy companies. This is available for qualifying households to improve the energy efficiency of housing stock for vulnerable households in both social and private sectors. It is recommended that the Council and Registered Providers explore this source of funding as a priority and look to work up a 5 – 10 year programme of work in both locations starting with those dwellings nearest St Mary’s Road to help to re-enforce the improvements along the high street.

Recycled Capital Receipts It is assumed that the Council will ring fence any capital receipts generated by the sale of sites in the Garston area to be used to implement projects identified in this masterplan. The main capital receipts generated will be from the proposed new housing site on Bank’s Road (LV02) and

any further sites sold on St Mary’s Road such as the site currently being acquired at the eastern end of the road by CPO.

Assumptions 1. S106 funding to be max £1k per unit for future development per LCC planning officers 2. Assumed delivery rate on new housing sites : LV01: Phase1: 60 units - 2016–18 Phase 2: 50 units - 2018–24 Phase 3: 608 units - 2024– 8 LV02: 284 units - 2015-2019.

Development dependent on site clearance and demolition of National Grid kit. Phase 1 to start 2015-2019.

New Homes Bonus available at £2k pa (current average LCC Council tax rate) for the 2 years 2014 and 2015 when NHB finishes.

3. Assumed average cost £10k per unit for ECO retrofit based on external insulation scheme (funding from power companies).

4. Assumed 50% households eligible for ECO funding project. Complete in phases of 50 dwellings pa in each area (‘Under the Bridge’ and the Village).

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Alternative funding sources, which could potentially be utilised, have also been identified in relation to each of the Masterplan themes.

Some funding sources are established funds inviting applications and others are organisations with a variety of funding sources which will need further consideration.

Please note: 1. This is snapshot of those funding sources which seem most relevant to the projects recommended. There are a myriad of funding sources available in particular for community organisations which it is not possible to comprehensively set out. Various organisations provide grant finding services, such as www. grantfinder.co.uk.

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2. The information is understood to be accurate at 1st September 2013, but funds can be withdrawn and be launched at short notice. It is recommended that the Council regularly monitors funding availability to identify appropriate opportunities. For example there are funding sources such as the HCA’s Empty Homes grant scheme and the Portas Pilot initiative which are not currently open for bids but may be repeated in the future.

3. The party eligible to apply for funding varies across the funding sources. In a number of cases the Council is not itself eligible but could still work with investors, developers, Registered Providers, community groups etc. to develop funding proposals and lend its support to those bids.

4. It is important to carefully consider the other detailed requirements of each individual funding source before investing significant time and resources bidding.

It is often wise to talk direct with the potential funder where feasible.

A good place to live

A place to do business

In addition to exploring investment in new housebuilding and Green Deal / ECO directly with developers, Registered Providers and the HCA the Council could explore:

In addition to investment by ABP, Veolia and other ports businesses and business space operators, the Council could also explore:

The Custom Build Loan Fund Operated by the HCA the £30m Fund provides loans to support infrastructure and construction costs for “custom build” homes. This is a rolling Fund to which applications can be made by developers, Registered Providers and community groups at any time typically for schemes of up to 20 units. Further information about the Fund can be found at www. homesandcommunities.co.uk/ourwork/ custom-build.

Further information about how community groups and groups of individuals can deliver Custom Build will be available later in September at www.collectivecustombuild. org.

The National Empty Homes Loan Fund Operated by Empty Homes and Ecology Building Society and launching on 2nd September the £3m Fund provides loans of £5k-£15k to individuals to refurbish long term empty properties to create affordable accommodation. Further information can be found at www.emptyhomes.com. Note that Liverpool City Council has been exploring becoming a pilot Local Authority.

Chrysalis A Fund managed by igloo, Royal Bank of Canada and GVA this is the £30m Merseyside JESSICA Fund which provides loans towards employment creating development projects. Investments are limited to sites of regional importance and projects that support areas of particular regeneration need. Further information can be found at www.chrysalisfund.co.uk.

Regional Growth Fund (RGF) This is a £3.2 billion loan fund designed to help businesses grow or diversify in order to protect and create jobs with funding provides towards both business space and other capital investment. Operated by BIS the RGF is a competitive fund open to “private sector” bidders seeking a minimum of £1 million so bids would need to be from one of the larger ports businesses. Four bidding rounds have already taken place. Following the June 2013 Spending Round allocation of a further £600m BIS is currently considering the scope and timings of Round 5 of the RGF and will make announcements in Autumn 2013. Further information can be found at www. gov.uk/understanding-the-regional-growth-fund. Note that RGF applications require LEP endorsement.

Growing Places Fund Operated by the LEP this £7.5m loan fund is available in Merseyside to businesses investing in job creation, with a particular focus on physical infrastructure projects of £250k or more. Further information can be found at www.liverpoollep.org.

Heritage Enterprise Scheme

Technology Strategy Board (TSB)

Operated by the Heritage Lottery Fund, the Scheme provides grants to community organisations to bring neglected historic buildings and sites back into use. Grants are available from £100k up to £5m.

Projects are to be delivered by developers, as landowner and/or development managers, working closely with the community groups. Funding applications can be made at any time.

The TSB invests in individual business ideas, rather than business space. This may be appropriate if the Council identifies specific local businesses which it wants to encourage to diversify and/or grow. TSB operates various funds, such as the Smart Fund which is designed to help SME businesses invest in and grow new concepts. Further information can be found at www. innovateuk.org/funding-competitions. See also Start Up Loans on the next page.

A green well connected neighbourhood

A thriving high street

In addition to exploring funding through Local Authority receipts, S106, recycled New Homes Bonus and the Mayoral Fund the Council could explore:

A retailer can only invest on commercial terms and the current cost of site acquisition to assemble an anchor store is prohibitive.

This may change over time as market values improve. However St Mary’s Road may not have the length of time this may take before it experiences further decline.

Big Lottery Fund BIG is one of the National Lottery funds providing a range of generally small community focused grants. It operates a variety of initiatives including programmes aimed at sport and healthy living. Further information on its various programmes can be found at www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/ funding/funding-finder Groundwork Groundwork is a national federation of charitable trusts promoting environmental improvement projects, supported by some core Government funding and significant donations from businesses and other sources. Groundwork can provide time and investment to support environmental projects, alongside investment of resources from local partners. For example Groundwork’s Green Energiser initiative gives local unemployed young people practical training in horticulture which can be linked to community gardening, allotment and other environmental and healthy living projects. Further information can be found at www.northwest. groundwork.org.uk/lancashire-west--wigan. aspx

Further information about EBs operating in the Merseyside area can be found at www.entrust.org.uk/home/lcf/fundersdirectory?region=27. Given their local connections it may be particularly useful to engage with Veolia – see www.veoliatrust. org Crowdfunding Crowdfunding is a relatively new concept whereby organisations wanting to raise finance do so directly from individuals or other organisations. Those pledging funding could be local or could be further afield, but all share in the interest in seeing a project succeed. The process begins with a fundraising target being set and the project advertised. If there are sufficient pledges to meet the fund-raising target the project goes ahead. The leading example in the UK is Spacehive and further information can be found at www.spacehive.com.

cyclepaths.

State Aid limitations also mean that the main focus of the Council’s support for reuse of the former Baths site and the former Coop store is likely to be facilitation rather than funding.

In relation to the Garston Space Agency project the scope to kickstart this using LCC assets has been identified. SLH has indicated a willingness to coordinate the Space Agency although we suggest the Council also speaks to other specialist organisations of which there are now a number (such as Meanwhile Space, We Are Pop Up or Pop Up Space) to be satisfied as to both experience and access to funding.

In addition to investment into the Space Agency the businesses themselves may need grants to start or grow. There are a variety of sources of information and grants depending on the sector, type of business, age of entrepreneur etc, for example visit www. startuploans.co.uk.

A distinctive image and strong identity In addition to funding from Groundwork, Landfill Tax Credits, Crowdfunding and the Local Sustainable Transport Fund, which could also be relevant to this theme, the Council could consider: Arts Council

Landfill Tax Credits This scheme enables operators of landfill sites to contribute money to enrolled Environmental Bodies (EBs) to carry out projects that meet environmental objects contained in the Landfill Tax Regulations.

These bodies then provide financial support to help environmental projects ranging from parks and nature reserves, playspaces and

State Aid restricts the scope for investment in retail space unless this takes the form of land assembly (e.g. through using CPO powers or public sector acquisition of sites in pursuit of regeneration and subsequent sale to a developer/retailer).

Example Spacehive project in Manchester City Centre.

Funds were raised from a variety of donors to improve a public square by planting street trees and installing flower boxes. The scheme has been successful and work was completed in Summer 2013.

The Arts Council is another National Lottery funded body. It provides a range of grants, including a small grants programme, typically of around £5k, towards community arts projects. This could for example be used towards works under the bridge.

A Garston pound The creation of the Brixton Pound is now well known and has been one of a number of initiatives which has lifted the Brixton area over recent years. Could a trading scheme be developed in Garston with retailers and the market? Further information can be found at www.brixtonpound.org.

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Reference Code LV LIVE WK WORK EN ENVIRONMENT HS ID

HIGH STREET IDENTITY

Theme A good place to live A place to do business A green, well connected neighbourhood A thriving high street A distinctive image and strong identity

6c.

Long term 10+ years

Project List

Medium to long 7-10+ years Medium 3-10 years Short to medium 3-7 years Short 0-3 years

Ref

Name

Description

LV01

South Cressington

Mixed Use residential led Long term development. Access via 10+ years Cressington Heath and Dock Road

LV02 EN03

LV03

Estimated Outputs

Estimated Costs

Potential Funding

Lead

Next Steps

Masterplan Theme

Residential led development: 718 homes with potential for waterside uses

£72m based on £100,000 per unit private developer costs

A private development funded by ABP or via/ with a development partner selected by ABP

ABP

Planning application to be prepared by ABP for the South Cressington Development. Vehicular access issues to be resolved

Live

Medium to Banks Road New residential Development development on National long 7-10+ years Sites Grid site and adjacent LCC owned land to include a significant area of new and improved public open space

Demolition of Gas works kit and cease/ rationalisation of operations on site by 2019.

Mixed - residential and open space development of 284 houses and apartments

A private development Cost of demolition £2.2 / S106 towards development of park million.

Capita Symonds on behalf of National Grid/ LCC

Live Capita Symonds to dispose/ develop site on Environment behalf of National Grid.

Under the Bridge Improvement Zone

Setting up of organistation to provide Green Deal/ ECO/ Home Improvement Loan advice for residents in properties in the Village area, which consists of approximately 690 houses in total, and determine houses eligible for funding

Cost £2.5m based on £10,000 estimate per unit assuming 50% homes/ residents eligible. 5 year programme of say 50 units pa

Green Deal Loans LCC (tbc) Home Improvement Loans ECO money for eligible households

Setting up of organisation to provide Green Deal/ ECO/ Home Improvement Loan advice for residents in properties in the Village area, which consists of approximately 690 houses in total and determine houses eligible for funding

Cost £3m based on £10,000 estimate per unit and approx 50% eligible homes/ residents.

6 year programme based on phases of approx 50 units pa

LCC (tbc) Green Deal Loans Home Improvement Loans ECO money for eligible households

Leisure or recreation facility / residential development (with large foundations to overcome ground conditions)

£3 million

A Privately Funded Development

8-12 Homes

c.£1-1.5m over Site sold on open LCC/SLH a 2 year period market and value used to fund Space Agency Custom Build Loan

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LV04

Garston Old Road Improvement Zone

Investment into energy efficiency of existing housing stock with focus on hard to treat properties

Timescale

Short to medium 3-7 years

Creation of framework to facilitate Investment into energy efficiency of existing housing stock with focus on hard to treat properties

Short to medium 3-7 years

Medium 3-10 years

LV05

Dingle Bank

Development onto Church Road to provide active frontage and improve connection between St Mary’s Road and Under the bridge.

Potential site for Leisure facility/ Residential use

LV06

Former Market Site

Residential development Short of 8-12 houses on the 0-3 years vacant former market site

£28.4m for new housing based on £100,000 per unit.

LCC to have further consultations with National Grid with a view to marketing it’s land to interested parties in partnership with National Grid Work up project plan and funding streams.

Procure energy company partner to deliver.

Live

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Contact SLH and LHT to determine appetite for improving energy efficieny of housing stock in area Work up project plan and funding streams.

Procure energy company partner to deliver.

Live

Contact SLH and LHT to determine appetite for improving energy efficiency of housing stock in area

LCC

Live LCC to confirm acceptability of site for a range of uses with planners and soft market site to potentially interested parties

LCC to review best bids Live and select offer

Ref

Name

Description

Timescale

WK01

Consolidation Consolidation of Port Long term of Port facilities and activities 10+ years onto and around Stalbridge and Old Dock

WK02

Blackburne Corridor Improvements Street Environmental Improvements

WK03

Blackburne Street Industrial Estates

EN01

Dingle Bank Park

Estimated Outputs

Estimated Costs

Potential Funding

Lead

Next Steps

Masterplan Theme

Businesses relocated onto other parts of ABP estate.

A private development funded by ABP

ABP

ABP to progress site consolidation

Work

Short to medium 3-7 years

Improved workspace and environment for the long term sustainability of the Industrial estate

Inward investment LCC/ from owners topped up Owners

by S106, Big Lottery Fund, Groundwork, Landfill Tax Credits

Identification of potential Work projects and funding Environment sources

Investment in existing workspace

Short to medium 3-7 years

Improved/ continued workspace provision providing local employment opportunities

-

Inward Investment from owners to attract light industries

Retain designation as light industrial to safeguard site for light industrial uses and employment

Work

Open space to provide buffer from existing residential development and the Port. Potential site for South Liverpool skate park hub.

Short to medium 3-7 years

Potential site for Skate Park hub with ancillary recreational facilities.

Aspiration to create a larger events facility to host competitions

Phase 1: £300,000

LCC / Possible Phase 1 KUSH skate funding from LCC available for skate park park group in South Liverpool with top up from S106, Big Lottery Fund, Groundwork, Landfill Tax Credits & Crowdfunding

LCC Neighbourhoods Team and KUSH skatepark group to submit bid and business/management plan to LCC

Environment

Up to £100,000 Local Sustainable Transport Fund 2015/2016 (LSTF)

Phase 2 £1.2 million

LCC

LCC to identify potential Environment funding sources and assess corridor options

S106/ Capital receipts from LCC land/ LSTF

LCC/ Liverpool 2020

To be included in bid for Environment cycle corridor funding

£22,000

S106, Big Lottery Fund, Groundwork, Landfill Tax Credits & Crowdfunding

LCC

Start on site to be determined following receipt of S106 contributions.

Environment

£100,000150,000 seed funding

Potential S106, Space Land receipt, Big Agency/ Lottery Fund, Arts LCC Council, Crowdfunding

SLH and LCC to agree delivery plan

High Street

Space Potential S106, Agency/ Land receipt, LCC Potential S106, Land receipt, Big Lottery Fund, Arts Council, Crowdfunding

SLH and LCC to agree site

High Street

EN02

Cycle Corridor

Short Cycle connection from Liverpool South Parkway 0-3 years to Coastal Reserve and Estuary Business Park

Improved cycle routes to pass under the bridge and include dedicated cycle lanes, advanced stop lines at junctions and signage.

EN04

Under the Bridge Connection

Short Environmental 0-3 years improvement project to improve pedestrian and cyclist experience under the bridge Improvement to linkages to create gateway feature

Lighting / Public Realm Around £20,000-£30, / Public Art - Wall 000 treatment to existing underside of bridge

EN05

Brunswick Street

Environmental Improvement project to improve connection to the Coastal Reserve

Short 0-3 years

Improvements to the existing access off Brunswick street to include welcome signage to the coastal reserve, refurbishment of access control gate, a new knee rail, remodelled grass verge and thinning of trees bordering the allotments.

HS01

Space Agency

Space Agency set up to manage temporary and alternative uses in the vacant properties along St Mary’s Road

Short 0-3 years

Y1 - 5 retail units occupied Y2/Y3 - 10 Retail units occupied

HS02

Space Agency Office

The first project of the Space Agency. A temporary office / hub to be located in vacant shop units on St Mary’s Road

Short 0-3 years

Office/ Hub to provide £50,000 base for Space Agency and rooms for local community groups

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Bizspace Cramptons Veolia Scottish Leather Box works

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Ref

Name

Description

Timescale

Estimated Outputs

Estimated Costs

Potential Funding

Lead

Next Steps

Masterplan Theme

HS03

Temporary Space

Space Agency to set up temporary cultural/ arts space or retail space on site of demolished buildings on St Mary’s Road/ James Road

Short 0-3 years

Space for cultural/ arts/ £50,000retail activity on the £100,000 high street, to provide animated frontage onto St Mary’s Road

Garston Space Agency to identify potential users

High Street

HS04

Garston Village Anchor

Development of retail Medium anchor to eastern end of 3-10 years Garston Village

A privately funded 50,000 sqft retail space Investment Development to include parking required in land assembly, planning and construction.

Likely to be 2014 or beyond

Developer supported

by LCC

Negotiate with land owners and potential occupier for site

High Street

HS05

Garston Village Market

Short Re-arrangement of Market layout to improve 0-3 years visual appearance and pedestrian flows through the market. Explore Market day car parking issues

Removal of 18 existing failed trees and tree guards and replacement with 9 semi-mature trees which would facilitate re-planning of market layout

£23,000

LCC

Start on site to be determined following receipt of S106 contributions.

Look into and try to resolve parking issues.

High Street

HS06

St Mary’s Road Streetscape

Re-alignment of carriage Short 0-3 years way to transform pedestrian environment and improve image of the high street.

Painting of the road surface at gateway junctions on St Mary’s Road. Narrowing the carriageway in places by using planters increase in pavement area in places to promote walking along the high street.

Up to £150,000 Local Transport Plan/ LSTF Sustrans - Pocket Places for People Initiative

LCC/ Liverpool 2020

LCC Highways/ High Street Liverpool 2020 to review proposals and progress implementation

HS07

Former Baths Mixed Use development Medium Site with active frontage onto 3-10 years Speke Road

Mixed use development, active ground-floor use with up to 50 residential units above.

£3m-£5m

Marcus Developments

Owner to produce and submit planning application

Live High Street

HS08

Former Bingo Identify potential user for Medium Hall vacant building.

3-10 years

Building to be occupied or redeveloped

Inward investment from LCC future owner

LCC to identify new owner for property

High Street

HS09

Former Coop Identify future occupier Store for coop store.

Short 0-3 years

New business created

-

Shop conversion/fitout privately funded

LCC/ Space LCC to resolve title Agency issues

High Street

ID01

Garston Village Identity Art/ Signage

New signage along the bypass to identify Garston Village as a location/ destination

Short 0-3 years

Project to provide signage

£10,000

S106 or other public resources matched by crowd-funding

LCC

LCC to investigate signage options

Identity

ID02

Gateway Signage A

Improved road signage approaching Garston Village at Garston Way, St Mary’s Road junction.

Medium 3-10 years

Improved vehicular signage to highlight route into Garston Village.

-

S106 Recycled Capital Receipts

LCC

LCC to look into possible funding for signage projects

Identity

ID03

Gateway Signage B

Improved road signage approaching Garston Village at Horrocks Avenue, Woolton Road junction.

Medium 3-10 years

Improved vehicular signage to highlight route into Garston Village.

-

S106 Recycled Capital Receipts

LCC

LCC to look into possible funding for signage projects

Identity

ID04

Gateway Signage C

Medium Improved road signage 3-10 years approaching Garston Village at Speke Road, Horrocks Avenue junction. Potential to link to Project 7: Speke Road Anchor

Improved vehicular signage to highlight route into Garston Village.

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S106 Recycled Capital Receipts

LCC

LCC to look into possible funding for signage projects

Identity

Potential S106 Space Land receipt, Big Agency/ Lottery Fund, Arts LCC Council, Crowdfunding

S106, Groundwork, Landfill Tax Credits

A Privately Funded Development

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Comments & Feedback This report sets out a masterplan and delivery strategy for Garston. It has been prepared by URBED working with EYE and Fore Consulting in collaboration with the community, stakeholders, South Liverpool Homes and Liverpool City Council.

We welcome feedback so please send comments to: rob.monaghan@liverpool.gov.uk Other reports available at www.urbed.coop

URBED (urbanism : environment : design) 10 Little Lever Street Manchester, M1 1HR t. 0161 200 5500 e. info@urbed.coop w. www.urbed.coop