Parks, green spaces, dockside walkways and cycle routes are transforming the Northbank waterfront at Wirral Waters, sitting alongside the new homes now arriving onsite.
Extensive public realm infrastructure work began on site earlier this year, following the appointment of contractor Eric Wright Civil Engineering (EWCE) by Peel L&P.
Large sections of a new dock edge walkway are now complete, ultimately opening up public access to the dockside of East Float for the first time in over a century. This ‘upper boardwalk’ pedestrian and cycleway link will create an attractive thoroughfare for residents alongside the water’s edge.
The first of two small residential parks, which have been designed to create green open spaces at the heart of this new mixed neighbourhood, is also shortly to complete. The parks are adjacent to the very first residential developments at Wirral Waters, the 500 home Legacy project due on site shortly, and East Float, a joint venture between Peel L&P and House by Urban Splash.
A series of four contemporary squares, currently under construction, will connect the Dock Road pedestrian and cycleway public realm works through to the dock edge, improving connectivity.
The new neighbourhood being created at Northbank has been designed to facilitate an open, mixed and connected community, which improves the health and wellbeing of existing and new residents and encourages active travel.
EWCE were also responsible for the public realm improvement works which took place earlier this year to the walking and cycling route that marks the boundary of the Northbank neighbourhood. This included the construction of 590 metres of shared cycleway and footpath next to the A5139 Dock Road, between East Float Apartments and Duke Street, as well as landscaping, street trees, boundary treatments, new street lighting columns and digital infrastructure.
The public realm works have been assisted by a £6m grant awarded in the Autumn of 2019 from Homes England’s Housing Infrastructure Fund (HIF) to Wirral Council. The grant has helped fund essential remediation, infrastructure and public realm works at Wirral Waters, including cycling and pedestrian routes, to support over 1,000 new homes being delivered across the Northbank neighbourhood.
Sophie White, Director of Infrastructure Grants at Homes England, said: “We are committed to working with ambitious local authority partners seeking to meet their local housing needs through delivery of key infrastructure. This £6m funding from the Housing Infrastructure Fund will help to fund essential infrastructure works at Wirral Waters, including green transport routes, and support the creation of new homes in the area.”
Richard Mawdsley, Director of Development at Wirral Waters, also commented: “At Northbank we are creating a neighbourhood with community, green public spaces and connectivity embedded in its foundations so that it becomes a place that enhances the quality of people’s lives.
“This is the first residential development we are delivering at Wirral Waters and you can now see it coming together on the ground. It’s already becoming a great place to walk and cycle and it’s exciting to see that life is beginning to return to this traditional dockland area once again.”
Alan Evans, director of regeneration and place at Wirral Council, said: “It’s incredibly exciting to see this area developing, making a tangible difference to the lives of our residents and businesses. Working with our partners across the Liverpool City Region, Homes England, Peel L&P, and the Council, we are starting to deliver real transformation in this area across the infrastructure, the buildings and public space.
“Providing active travel options and high quality green spaces for our residents is an essential part of our regeneration programme and it is fantastic to see this being demonstrated in the new neighbourhood at Northbank.”
