Regeneration has created opportunities for growth and prosperity

Apr 2 2008 by Bill Gleeson, Liverpool Daily Post

THOSE with the task of regenerating a city and creating opportunities for people to do business could be forgiven for believing they work in a time warp.

Or that they are sitting ducks in a fairground shoot-out.

Critics may round on them, signing off any brickbat with some sort of “it wasn't like this in the old days,” protest.

Others may wave their senses goodbye by accusing the regeneration bodies of “going backwards,” or “stepping back in time”, or even being devoid of original thought and concept with the classic “pinching old ideas” charge. Pleasing the people all, or even most, of the time has never been easy.

These thoughts have come to mind on numerous occasions during the last couple of years as we've all tip-toed, or crawled, engine idling, through the regeneration of Liverpool city centre.

It's undoubtedly work in progress.

And, at times, progress has appeared snail-like. Listen to a taxi driver if you want a colourful, un-edited account of what's right and what's not.

These critics came to mind again last week when the city centre regeneration company Liverpool Vision hosted the publication of a review of its activities over a decade.

I'll swiftly declare an interest here as a serving member of Liverpool Vision's board.

In the context of the report published last week, though, my involvement is assuredly recent. Its author, and his team, has produced an assessment of almost 10 years of activity undertaken by Liverpool Vision since the late 1990s, long before my time.

"Make No Little Plans – the regeneration of Liverpool city centre 1999-2008" takes its title from a quote attributed to an American architect and planner, Daniel Burnham. Reading the report is itself a little like taking a spin in a time machine.

Was city centre regeneration back then really so fragmented? Were the doubters not right to advise caution and an end to pie- in-the-sky ideas which rarely grew beyond the pages of a flashy press pack? How much has been achieved in these years?

The answers may be complex.

Put it in another context. Ask yourself how many of the businesses you know in this city today were here just nine or so years ago. I think you may be surprised by your own answer. I was with mine.

If the number of fledgling businesses continues to grow, and if those with a decade under their belts continue to prosper, we can be reasonably sure the regeneration of our city has indeed created opportunities for economic growth and prosperity.

Hats off to those who made no little plans – to start a business or regenerate a city.

MATT JOHNSON is chairman of Mando Group