Liverpool city council has announced plans to build an exhibition and events complex on the city’s waterfront.
The 87,000 sq ft venue is to be developed by a partnership between the council and ACC Liverpool, which manages the BT Convention Centre and Echo Arena.
It will be used to stage both trade and consumer exhibitions, large-scale national and international conferences with attached exhibitions, and concerts for up to 10,000 people. A sky bridge will connect it to the adjacent convention centre and arena on the Kings Dock.
The new, £40m venue will be open for business in September 2014.
It is expected to host about 50 events and attract some 250,000 visitors in its first year of operation.
Liverpool council estimates the exhibition and event programme will support 1,300 jobs in the wider economy and contribute an estimated £40m pa to the city region.
Funding is to be raised through borrowing, supported directly from the revenue generated by the centre.
A 200-bed, four- or five-star hotel is included in plans, to be funded separately by the private sector.
The planning application is likely to be submitted in March 2012, with work on-site starting in early 2013.
Liverpool council leader Joe Anderson said: “This is great news for the city. It’s a really exciting project, which will deliver a major boost to the city’s economy, creating hundreds of jobs and attracting thousands of new visitors every year.
“It is a huge statement of confidence in Liverpool, and will be a boost to hundreds of local businesses.”
David McDonnell, chairman of ACC Liverpool, added: “The feasibility work we have undertaken demonstrates that this development will be self-funding and will begin to attract new business to the city as soon as it opens.”
daniel.cunningham@estatesgazette.com
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