It has been closed since the end of JuneDan Haygarth Liverpool Daily Post Editor and Regeneration Reporter
06:00, 14 Aug 2025
The road will remain closed throughout the month(Image: Liverpool Echo)
A city centre road which has been shut for more than a month will remain inaccessible to traffic until September. Access to Old Hall Street from the junction of Leeds Street and The Strand has been closed to traffic since June 30.
Emergency services were called to the area on that date after receiving a report from the building managers of Beetham Tower, one of the tallest buildings in the city, about a sculpture called Connections – Face of Liverpool. The monument, an abstract piece by artist Stephen Broadbent, was reported to be leaning at a “concerning angle” towards the tower.
Liverpool City Council was alerted to the issue by Merseyside Police and the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service, and a closure was put in place due to the unsafe structure. The north end of Old Hall Street, from the Radisson Blu hotel to the junction of Leeds Street and The Strand, remains closed today.
Pedestrians can still use that stretch of the road, but the pavement is closed nearest to the structure. It is still closed to traffic.
The ECHO understands Liverpool City Council cannot open the structure until the artwork has been made secure. It falls within the estate of Beetham Tower, which is managed by Berkeley Shaw.
On Monday (August 11), a team from Pure Utility Solutions was on site at the monument, behind the fence, appearing to work to make it secure.
A section of the road remains closed to traffic(Image: Liverpool ECHO)
Regarding the reopening of the road, a spokesman for Berkeley Shaw, which manages the Beetham Tower estate on behalf of the landowner and which is co-ordinating repair works on its behalf, has now told the ECHO: “The temporary traffic regulation order governing the closure of Old Hall Street has been extended until September 1 whilst investigatory works remain on-going into the structure.
“Engineers are currently excavating around the concrete walls and conducting a GPS survey of the area surrounding the monument to properly identify the cause of the fault and determine the most appropriate remedy.
“They will then provide a quote to stabilise the structure which will be sent to the estate owner for their instruction.
“Once they have approved the stabilisation design and cost, contractors will complete the works and look to reopen the road.
“The contractors will then provide reports to support the removal of external cladding to allow for further internal inspection of the structure, provide a detailed analysis report and a proposal for its repair or removal.”
About the artwork, Art UK said: “This abstract artwork, a curved wall comprised of vertical rectangular blocks with the words ‘Permission to Come Aboard’ written in Morse code, resembles an open ship’s porthole.
“It is designed to recognise and celebrate Liverpool’s national and international connections.
“The faces captured in the glass portholes represent Liverpool’s diverse gene pool – pioneers, traders, travellers, migrant people, from throughout history and all over the world, who have made Liverpool their home.”