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St Luke's Church work
set to be completed faster
A half a million pound scheme to
repair the crumbling stonework of St Luke's 'bombed out'
Church in
Liverpool is set to be completed by the end of 2016.
The 1st Phase of the work, costing £150k and funded by Liverpool City
Council and Historic England, is already underway to safeguard the future of
the much loved landmark.
Now a report to the council's Cabinet on Friday, 22 January 2016, is recommending
that; subject to securing funding from Historic England; work on further
phases costing an addition £350k are completed by November 2016, rather than
being phased over the next 2 years as originally planned.
Speeding up the work will be more cost effective and mean that the new
operator that will be appointed to run events at the venue will not face
ongoing disruption.
The majority of the 6,300 people who responded to a recent consultation over
the future of the Church were supportive of limited development and events
taking place at the site including the installation of toilets, food and
drink facilities, seating and a performance area.
Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Cllr Malcom Kennedy said:- "There is
a great love for St Luke's Church, demonstrated by the incredible response
we had to a consultation last year over its future use.
We really want to give the new operator that is appointed the best possible
chance to establish an events programme, and finishing the work before they
start will mean they can plan without being constrained by repair work going
on.
This is a really exciting time for St Luke's Church as we are determined to
secure its future and make sure that future generations can continue to
visit it and enjoy it."
The next phase of work is expected to start in April and will include
repairs to the tower, lower level stonework and perimeter railings.
In February, the City Council will invite expressions of interest from
operators to run the site with the successful applicant having to
demonstrate that they can offer a viable future in line with the results of
the public consultation.
A new operator is expected to be appointed in the summer, with repair work
completed in November and the building reopening to the public by the end of
2016.
The cost of the work is being split between Liverpool City Council and
Historic England. |
