£100m Edge Lane developer appoints construction firm

THE £100m redevelopment of Edge Lane Retail Park has begun with the appointment of a contractor to deliver the project.

Site owner The Derwent Group has appointed Caddick Construction to create the new retail and leisure park, to be known as Liverpool Shopping Park, which on completion will create more than 3,000 jobs.

Occupying three quarters of a mile of frontage onto Liverpool’s Edge Lane and totalling 727,000 sq ft of mixed-use commercial development, it comprises 41 retail units and parking for 1,500 cars.

The site spans the current Edge Lane Retail Park as well as the site located across the junction of Rathbone Road and Edge Lane, which is home to Subway and the former Blockbuster store.

Construction will begin with the creation of 92,500 sq ft of retail space known as the Western Quarter.  This includes an anchor tenant unit fronting on to Edge Lane and the first leg of a horseshoe-shaped run of retail units.  Work also includes new industrial and trade counter units on Rathbone Road and the construction of two new large retail units on the former Blockbuster site.

David Lyons, managing director of The Derwent Group, said: “This is a transformative project and the final piece of Liverpool’s retail puzzle. Liverpool Shopping Park will bring branded fashion retailers, restaurants and leisure operators together in an out-of-town location, complete with plenty of free parking and great access in and out of the city.

“This is a sizeable and strategic £100m investment for The Derwent Group and it will deliver much needed regeneration and jobs in this part of the city. It’s taken some time to get this project on the table but everything is now in place for work to begin in earnest.”

Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson, said: “This is a key gateway route into Liverpool and is the first glimpse that new visitors get when they come to Liverpool for the first time.  I have worked closely with The Derwent Group to support them to come up with an exciting scheme that will be a top quality shopping and leisure destination and deliver many new jobs.

“Liverpool Shopping Park will breathe new life into this part of the city, and it complements the other major regeneration schemes happening in the area including new housing, the film and TV studios at the former Littlewoods Building and the new Royal Liverpool University Hospital.”