When boom goes to bust – City Editor David Bartlett looks at the battle to fill Liverpool’s empty city centre flats

A DECADE ago, the number of people living in the city centre could be measured in the hundreds. Now the population is around 15,000, thanks to a property boom that saw apartments built at a rate of 2.5 per day between 2002 and 2006, when 3,600 flats were thrown up.

But, for the past three years, as vacancy levels have fallen in the suburbs, the amount of empty properties has remained around 12% in the city centre.

While this is almost four times the national average of empty homes, it is not as bad as Leeds city centre, where 25% of apartments are vacant.

However, some Liverpool developments even put Leeds in the shade. Just weeks ago, Millennium Estates, the company behind the £35m luxury Alexandra Tower on Liverpool’s waterfront at Princes Dock, went into administration – 147 of its 201 apartments were empty.

In July last year, the neighbouring City Lofts block also went into administration.

Labour Cllr Steve Munby, whose Riverside ward covers the city centre, said in time these flats will be bought as people like living by the waterside.

But he worries more about developments in other areas that do not have the same draw.

He said: “We need to work to improve the management of the existing blocks and in particular support the rights of leaseholders. We need to do something to match the need for homes and housing with the supply.

“That means an end to sometimes badly designed and poorly managed one and two bed apartments, where developers either disappear or go into administration. I have been arguing that we are building too many apartments in the city centre for years. I hate to say I told you so, but I have had my concerns confirmed yet again.”

Gerry Protor, general secretary of the Federation of Liverpool Waterfront Residents Associations, said the group had started to notice a shift in ownership.

“Before the credit crunch, the percentage of owner occupiers in apartment blocks had been going up. But apartments that were previously owner occupied are now being rented out.

“That’s not the best context for creating cohesive communities, but it is better to have people living in a flat than it sitting empty. Our concern is to create a city and apartment environment that is sustainable, and a community that changes every six months is not sustainable.” The Federation has helped organise a conference called liverpool leaseholder.com at the BT Convention Centre on Saturday, April 18, that will look at the wide range of issues affecting leaseholders.

Liverpool Council is supporting the conference and Cath Green, executive director for neighbourhoods and communities, said the council was keen to work with leaseholders to improve city centre dwelling.