Hundreds of new homes and care units are to be built on the site of Liverpool FC’s historic former training ground.
Proposals submitted to repurpose the Reds’ famed former Melwood base in West Derby have been signed off by Liverpool Council ’s planning committee this afternoon after years of debate and changes. The application, put forward by housing group Torus, will now lead to a mixture of 170 homes, bungalows and care units being built on the site off Deysbrook Lane.
The Premier League club left their home of almost seven decades to move to a £50m new facility in Kirkby in 2020. The existing LFC infrastructure at the former training ground will be retained and repurposed to form the new home of the Robbie Fowler and Jamie Carragher Football Education Academy.
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Outline planning permission was granted back in 2017 with changes made to address drainage and highways issues. The now approved scheme will include the construction of a three-storey structure to house 96 extra care units, made up of 65 one-bed rooms as well as including eight dementia dwellings and 31 two-bed units.
Alongside those will be 66 dwellings, comprising a mix of seven two-bed bungalows, seven two-bed terraced houses, 18 two-bed semi detached, 24 three-bed semi-detached and 10 four-bed houses. Matthew Rushton, senior development manager at Torus, said the firm had a "strong track record of delivering".
He added that the new scheme would allow the historic site to be opened to the wider public for the first time and would provide "much needed" and affordable housing, as well as suitable accommodation for older people. Mr Rushton said the company wanted to create a "positive legacy" for the "iconic site" and it was a task that wasn't taken on lightly.
The application is an opportunity to positively integrate the Melwood site into the West Derby community, according to the applicant. Regarding traffic issues around the site, the meeting heard how new vehicular access points will be installed on Deysbrook Lane, Melwood Drive and Crown Road.
Chris Rosario, who lives on Crown Road, said while he wasn’t against a development, he was critical of the plans creating a “backlog” of traffic on the route and said he felt Torus hadn’t considered the impact on residents. Officers said they were comfortable with the situation and it would be “less impactful” on the road network.
The plans were backed unanimously by councillors after a verbal agreement.
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