It may be the last part of the city centre to be regenerated, but that looks set to change
There are big changes planned around Monument Place and London Road
Liverpool city centre has enjoyed a remarkable renaissance over the past twenty years or so. The catalyst of the Liverpool One development has spearheaded a city that has moved on significantly from the difficult days that preceded it to become a bustling shopping and living centre and a global visitor attraction. But not everywhere in the city centre has benefited from this revival equally.
If you stroll out of Liverpool’s main Lime Street Station, you are met with one of the most impressive entrances to a city anywhere in the country.
Few places in this nation can boast a welcoming committee of St George’s Hall, the plateau in front of it and the glorious buildings of William Brown Street.
But if you were to turn just slightly away from that majestic view and back on yourself, you would end up on London Road – where it is fair to say the view is not quite as resplendent.
Once a bustling road of shops and – famously 27 pubs – that will bring back fond childhood memories for many Scousers, it is fair to say that London Road and the area surrounding it have seen better days.
The Islington area that surrounds London Road has a rich history at the heart of the city’s textiles industry and rag trade – and while there are still plenty of businesses – old and new – that draw on that heritage, particularly in Stafford Street, the wider area has fallen into decline in recent decades.
There are big changes planned around Monument Place and London Road
High crime levels, few open green spaces and a transient student population led to a lack of a coherent community, and the area previously became Liverpool’s notorious red light district.
But green shoots of hope began to arrive in 2017, when a group of local business figures, residents and others with an interest in the area came together to form the Fabric District Community Interest Company (CIC), with the name of the group nodding to that important history of textiles and rags. The aim of the group was to promote the area, drive positive change and unlock its potential.
And we have already seen some progress in those different areas. A range of new and interesting businesses have opened up in and around London Road in recent years – with no better than the hugely popular Bêkas Cafê – Liverpool’s first Kurdish cafe.
Improvements have also been made in terms of housing in the area. The Milliners Yard development – which was previously the Hughes House warehouse building – was completed earlier this year and now offers 258 homes targeted at key workers from nearby organisations like the Royal Liverpool Hospital and the city’s universities.
Next to it, work continues to turn the iconic former home of TJ Hughes, Audley House, into nearly 200 flats – both developments are seen as crucial to enticing more people to make this area their home on a long-term basis.
But it is perhaps the space in front of these two large buildings that is seen as the most pivotal when it comes to the future regeneration of London Road and the wider Fabric District. The open pedestrianised plaza is known for holding markets – but it looks tired and unloved at present.
But that could all be soon to change. Proposals from Liverpool City Council and the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority would see major improvements made to Monument Place to turn it into an attractive and versatile public space capable of holding major events, with new seating areas and an open bandstand.
There are also plans for new footpaths, road crossings and segregated cycle lanes in the area – aimed at boosting public transport routes in what is a busy road for buses and an important link from the city centre up to key sites like the hospital.
Jason Abbott has been involved in the Fabric District for most of his life, initially through his dad Charlie moving his screen printing business to the Islington area. Jason now runs The Tapestry building in the same area, a mixed-use creative community hub that has been one of the big successes of the district in recent years. He is also a key member of the CIC.
Speaking about the new plans for Monument Place, he said: “It’s a brilliant space, and there are not many of them in the city. It is very underutilised at the moment and has a lot of potential for change, which is hopefully coming down the road.
“Monument Place was identified way back from when we started the CIC as one of the key pieces of regeneration, and it’s good to see that now there are plans that the council and the combined authority are bringing forward, which look good.”
Speaking about the wider Fabrict District and London Road, he said: “The area has been overlooked for a long time because there have been other priorities, but the CIC has been trying to push it up the agenda and make it a priority area for the council. It is good to see that being recognised and getting that focus. It is long overdue but very welcome.”
Jason said the focus on making the district a place where people will come to live for longer periods than simply study will be key to creating a more settled community.
He added: “If you look at the block that has been built now next to the old TJ Hughes building, it is for long-term residents, and I won’t get into the whole student debate, but we need more people living in the area long-term, rather than people who will be here for a year and then move on.
New images show what the Fabric District could look like after improvements
“We want people to take up long-term residency, to use local businesses and create a community, and the square will be a massive part of that as a focal point for things that happen, like rejuvenating the market – I think it will be quite magnificent.”
He added: “Its great to see more and more independent businesses coming to the area and making it home and creating a community. We are trying to make sure there is a mix of everything here.
“At the moment, visitors come to the city out of Lime Street Station and turn up London Road; they don’t get a great impression, but it’s an important route leading up to the Knowledge Quarter and the hospitals with some world-class facilities – so it is a really important link that is now hopefully going to get that improvement that will change people’s perception of London Road.”
Liverpool City Council’s cabinet member for growth and economy, Cllr Nick Small, told the ECHO why these plans could be so important.
He said: “This is really the last bit of the city centre that has been untouched by regeneration for about 30 years. Monument Place is a transformational scheme.
“This is going to be a new public space that will look really good. We are going to improve the cycling connectivity with a cycle lane through the middle of it. It is also going to be part of the new green bus routes with a new bus corridor.
“We need to make this an easier, more attractive and more animated route through the city centre. There are some really interesting food businesses here, restaurants and international supermarkets, and we want to support them and do more in terms of making it a destination.
“The area is really well placed; you are just outside Lime Street, you are on major bus routes and near to the theatres and St George’s Quarter. What I would like to see is people getting off the bus early and spending a bit of money on London Road, and we need to make it a more attractive place to do that – Monument Place will start to do that.”
He added: “It’s already quite a cool place to be, but increasing the residential population will only increase that. We are having some very interesting conversations with investors and developers who want to do some really innovative things in the Fabric District and are very excited about it.”