£11m funding deal signals successful conclusion for stalled £45m scheme

Work will soon complete at a £45m Liverpool apartment scheme, almost three years after it was halted due to lack of funding

In November, 2019, developer Primesite said work on The Rise in Low Hill had come to a halt because the firm “lacks the financial backing”.

Just over a year later, Nexus Residential announced a new partnership with Legacie Developments which they said would see them redevelop the site.

Nexus Residential and Legacie Developments completed on the purchase of the site in April 2021. Construction recommenced in May 2021.

Now known as Element – The Quarter, the scheme is heading towards completion after the two Liverpool-based firms secured £11m in funding for the eco-development.

The apartment scheme on Low Hill, which sits just north of the city centre, boasts a range of sophisticated eco-friendly features and low-carbon technologies, including solar panels, e-car charging points, air-source heat pumps, rainwater recycling system and a smart system to reduce electricity consumption within apartments.

A joint venture between Nexus Residential and Legacie Developments, earlier this year they announced a commitment to plant almost 50,000 trees in the Amazon Rainforest as part of their commitment to a sustainable future in the construction industry.

Investment house RWinvest, which specialises in buy-to-let investments on prominent residential developments, has led the international sales drive on the project comprising 316 residential apartments, plus purpose-built accommodation for 141 students and commercial units.

Cheadle-based specialist lender, Together, has provided a development facility for Element.

The latest funding comes after Nexus and Legacie announced a multimillion-pound funding facility with the finance group – which has a £4.8bn loan book – in June for its City Residence Apartments project in North Liverpool.

Element’s first apartments are set to be delivered in early 2023.

John Morley, CEO of Legacie Developments, said: “It is fantastic to be working with Together again on another major development. The funding deal will help unlock further local jobs and training opportunities for young people.

“Their investment will help us bring to life an eco-development which Liverpool can be proud of.

“Not only that, attracting major inward investment is also great news for the city’s property and construction sector as it bounces back from COVID-19.”

Michael Gledhill, managing director of Nexus Residential, said: “Having a large institutional funder like Together backing another of our developments is a major vote of confidence. Works are progressing well on site, and we are excited to deliver hundreds of quality new homes in Element next year.

“Once again it underlines our commitment to Liverpool – promoting the city to institutional lenders such as Together and successfully delivering multiple landmark developments here.

“Our partnership with Legacie is successfully creating new homes, thousands of jobs for local people, as well as bringing in new ongoing revenue streams for the local authority.”

Chris Taylor, director of origination at Together, said: “This excellent scheme, once complete, will provide a luxury living and leisure space for postgraduates and professionals. This is another example where we have stepped in alongside a trusted partner to complete a part-built scheme that had stalled and had become an eyesore in the surrounding area.”

Legacie Developments has partnered with Nexus Residential on other major developments including Liverpool’s One Baltic Square. The first blocks on the flagship 296-unit scheme on the edge of the city’s Baltic Triangle are expected to be complete by the end of 2022.