Planners approve £11m Liverpool retail expansion

Derwent Estates secures planning consent for an £11m expansion of Liverpool Shopping Park with 90% of units let and new tenants including a Tesla showroom. Tony McDonough reports

Liverpool Shopping Park is to be extended by a further 70,000 square metres, taking the total area to 235,000 square metres.

In an £11 million project, Derwent Estates, which manages the park on behalf of the Albert Gubay Charitable Foundation, will extend the park off Edge Lane, which first opened in late 2017.

Derwent says 90% of the new space, which has now been approved by Liverpool City Council, has been pre-let. The new tenants will include a 20,000-square-foot Tesla showroom, which has signed a 20-year lease.

Two new drive-thrus will be operated by Five Guys and Costa Coffee, both of which have taken 15-year leases. The existing Hollywood Bowl will see its facility reconfigured and renovated to create a new 35,000 square foot bowling and leisure facility with a new 20-year lease.

They will join existing brands at the park which include M&S Food, H&M, Nike, Greggs, Next, Smyths Toys, JD Sports, TK Maxx and most recently PureGym.

James Maule-Ffinch, senior asset manager at Derwent Estates, said: “Liverpool Shopping Park’s prominent location, fronting Edge Lane, means it has immediate appeal for retail and leisure operators.

“This next phase of the park’s development will increase it in size to 235,000 square metres, making it one of the largest and most popular retail and leisure destinations in the region.

“The fact that we have been able to pre-let the majority of this latest phase so quickly is a testament not only to the attractiveness of the Commercial Park, but also to the high quality of the units.

“We recently secured a 4,000 square meter lease to Schuh on a 10-year lease, which demonstrates that high-profile occupiers continue to flock to the park. There are only two 3,000 sqm units left and we are already in advanced negotiations with potential operators.

“We plan to appoint a contractor in the coming weeks to start on site later this summer.”

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ATP Planning is the planning consultant advising Derwent Estates with architect RGP and project managers Drees & Sommer (UK Ltd). McMullen Real Estate and CSP are the letting agents retained for the scheme.

Derwent Estates continues to be very active in this gateway to Liverpool city center location, having just agreed a 20-year lease with kitchen supplier Howdens for the former American Golf building further along Edge Lane.