Culture year "already challenging perceptions" say experts

Jan 31 2008 David Bartlett

LIVERPOOL’S Capital of Culture year is helping to challenge perceptions of the city as having a “retro look”, according to an eminent local government leader.

Sir Jeremy Beecham’s comments to the Daily Post came on the first day of the British Urban Regeneration Association’s (BURA) national conference which was being held at FACT yesterday and today.

Delegates met to hear how Liverpool’s regeneration was progressing and the economic challenges the city faces in the future.

Council leader Warren Bradley told the audience the level of development and investment in the city was “concrete evidence of a city with raising ambitions” to be a premier European city.

Jim Gill, chief executive of the new super-quango Liverpool Vision, spoke about the need for the city to accelerate its growth and job creation to catch up with the rest of the UK.

Rod Holmes, project director of Grosvenor’s Liverpool One, received a rapturous applause for his speech about how the company’s development is currently transforming a key part of the city centre.

He said: “Capital of Culture is a result of the great revival that is happening, not the other way round, as is sometimes claimed.

“Grosvenor would not have invested £1bn just because a big party was taking place.

“Liverpool is a city going through dramatic transition, this is a work in progress.”

Liverpool Vision will amalgamate three existing quangos Business Liverpool, Liverpool Land Development Company, and Liverpool Vision.

It will start to operate from April 1, and yesterday Mr Gill, who is also chief executive of the existing Liverpool Vision, said its first aim would be to make sure the current momentum was kept.

“The immediate challenge, because change can be disruptive, but we are really quite confident it will not be.

The new company is charged with increasing inward investment in Liverpool and securing more jobs.

“In one sense it’s about doing more of the same.

“We also need to recognise the opportunities and take advantage of opportunities.”

He said the city’s knowledge economy, which is currently worth £1bn a year, was an area that could be grown.

“I see our position as a fixer or facilitator to identify issues.”

Sir Jeremy, president of BURA and vice-chairman of the Local Government Association, said: “Clearly there has been a huge turn around in the city centre, and that’s very important to the local economy.”

He said the challenge for Liverpool, as it is for many city’s undergoing renew, was to make sure the people in the neighbourhoods benefited from development.

“I think there has been a slightly retro look about Liverpool, which I think Capital of Culture will help challenge.”

“I think it will certainly help that.”