|
Municipal Building marketed
for sale
A search for a buyer for Liverpool City Council’s former
Administrative Headquarters is getting underway. Advertisements have been placed
in trade and local press marketing Municipal Building, located on Dale Street,
which has been declared surplus to requirements, as the City Council seeks to
find £90 million of savings over the next 3 years. Described as:- “a rare
opportunity to acquire a landmark Grade II listed City Centre Office”,
it advises that the premises could be used for a variety of alternative uses
including:- a hotel, residential accommodation, leisure or retail space. The
marketing brochure highlights some of the unique design features of the Italian
and French renaissance influenced building, including 16 sandstone figures
around the exterior representing the arts, sciences and industries of Liverpool
and a bell tower in the centre of the building. The building, which opened in
1866, has space for 1,000 staff, but only 640 employees are accommodated there
due to a significant reduction in the Council’s head count, in recent years.
The proposal is part of an accommodation strategy which aims to deliver
significant ongoing savings and generate funding which can be reinvested in
reducing the costs of the City’s major infrastructure projects programme.
Councillor Malcolm Kennedy, Cabinet member for regeneration, said:-
“Municipal Building has been a magnificent home for Liverpool City Council since
the 1860s, and this is the end of an era. It was built at a time when, unlike
now, the City Council ran most public services in the City, but the costly
nature of running and maintaining it means we no longer have the staff numbers
to justify retaining it. We are determined to find a long term sustainable use
for the building which will also create new jobs and make a contribution to the
local economy. We will ensure that its future use protects its unique
architectural features, as we have done with the neighbouring Municipal Annexe
and Royal Insurance Building which have recently been brought back into use as 4
star hotels. The sale of Municipal Building will bring in money which we can
reinvest in reducing the costs of our capital infrastructure programme, as well
as delivering ongoing savings by lowering our overheads.”
The building is on 3 floors with an extensive basement, and covers 11,494 square
metres. Workers are being moved to other existing sites across the City,
such as Cunard Building, at the Pier Head, Premier Court, on Hatton Garden,
Venture Place, on Sir Thomas Street and Wavertree Customer Focus Centre, on
Wavertree Road. The One Stop Shop based in Municipal Building will be relocated
to a self contained unit within the refurbished St John’s Market, ensuring that
customers can still access Council services in a central location. Consideration
is also being given to putting other public facing Government services in the
facility to generate wider savings. Interested parties have until Friday,
16 December 2016, to make an offer for the building. |
