Member Article

Cains Brewery Village development gets go-ahead

Construction work for a new tourism, leisure and retail attraction in Liverpool will start within a year after councillors approved plans for the £150m development of Cains Brewery Village.

The first phase of the new one million square feet development, which will secure the beer brand and grade II listed brewery, is expected to be complete by summer 2016.

Liverpool Mayor Joe Anderson described the project as an exciting development which would breathe new life into the city’s Baltic Quarter.

City planning councillors have approved the scheme and granted listed building consent. Now Cains Brewery Village is seeking development partners and operators for the hotel and independent cinema elements of the scheme, as well as an upmarket quality supermarket operator for the food retail element.

The scheme will secure and create in the region of 800 full-time jobs and is expeced to attract around 2.5 million visits per annum. A net additional £25m of GVA economic benefit would be delivered to the city per year.

The plans will see the restoration of the grade II listed brewery building to its former glory, and housing the new Cains brewery, museum and event centre with a ‘Sky Bar’ in the roof which will offer views over the city and the river Mersey.

The building will also house a 94 room boutique hotel, courtyard bistro bar & restaurants and a large open plan retail hall for artisan food producers to make and sell their produce on site.

There will also be a designer retail market for independent fashion businesses and function rooms. The existing historic Brewery Tap pub will be restored and retained.

The plans also include a four-screen independent art-house cinema, a supermarket, health / beauty and fitness centre, up to 775 high quality homes or 2,500 student bedrooms and 500-plus car parking spaces.

The independent art-house cinema is to have treated copper panels on the outside to reflect the copper vessels traditionally used as part of the brewing process.

The new Cains brewery which will be installed will enable the business to brew a full range of international craft beer styles for consumption in the UK and export around the world. It will also be an integral part of the wider destination.

Liverpool Mayor Joe Anderson said: “The Cains Brewery Village scheme will transform one of the city’s most important historic buildings and create a new tourist destination capable of holding food, craft and cultural events which will complement the city’s existing retail and leisure offer. It will also be a perfect neighbour to the vibrant cultural community in the Baltic Quarter. We’re delighted this scheme is progressing.”

Sudarghara Dusanj, managing director of Cains Brewery Village, said: “We are going to create a major new tourism and leisure asset for the city which will secure the future of the Cains beer brand and the grade II listed brewery for decades to come.

“We are now seeking development partners and operators for the cinema, hotel and supermarket to help take the scheme forward. We are particularly keen to speak to upmarket quality supermarket operators who want to take advantage of what is a clear gap in the city market.

“We’d like to thank the city’s planning and regeneration team for all their help in bringing this forward as well as our Baltic Triangle neighbours who have been extremely supportive and have bought into our vision.”

Louise Ellman, Labour MP for Liverpool Riverside, said: “The planning permission means we will see the restoration of one of the city’s key heritage assets and the creation of a new visitor attraction for an important part of Liverpool. It’s really good news for the city.

Max Steinberg, Chief Executive of Liverpool Vision, said: “These proposals are an indication of confidence in the city and its prospects. It’s an extremely exciting scheme and we’re delighted to see it being brought forward.

“Brewery Village can be a tourist anchor at the southern end of the city centre, linking into the Marina and Waterfront and helping to create a new hub of activity for visitors.”

Adam Hall, Managing Director of Falconer Chester Hall (Architects) said: “The scheme will bring together new and old to create a genuinely atmospheric and vibrant destination, with design inspiration coming from right across the world.

“The brewery building will be restored to glories not seen for a hundred years and become a landmark which the entire city can be proud of.”

Mark Worcester, Director of Turley Associates (Planning and Heritage Consultants) said: “The granting of planning permission and listed building consent reflects our very careful handling of the site’s historic and architectural significance, as well as the major positive impact it can have on the city.

“We had the support of English Heritage, which said it considered the scheme to be ‘a constructive way of finding a new use for some otherwise challenging, nationally significant buildings’, as well as the overwhelming majority of the public who we consulted on the plans.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Simon Malia .