How to score with stadium development

COMMENT Liverpool is a remarkable city; vibrant, passionate, altruistic and surprising. It is renowned for its friendly people but is also home to some of the nation’s best arts, culture and nightlife, stunning buildings and architecture, a fascinating maritime history and, of course, an unrivalled sporting pedigree led by two Premier League football clubs.  Football is a major part of life in Liverpool. It is deeply engrained in the fabric of our communities, offering not just a sporting outlet for supporters but social cohesion, companionship and an economic driver through jobs for local people and tourism. So when one of those football clubs moves to a new stadium it creates a once-in-a-generation opportunity that must be harnessed to not only benefit the club but its wider community as well. That is why I am proud Everton’s plans for a state-of-the-art 52,888-capacity stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock will deliver more than just a football or sporting landmark on Liverpool’s world-famous waterfront. It will be a transformational development that will provide much-needed public benefits to not only the Liverpool City Region but the North of England and the UK as a whole. Vital for recovery Nationally, the Premier League generates £7.6bn for our country’s economy and, as a founder member of the Football and Premier Leagues – and one of only six clubs to have played every Premier League season since its formation in 1992 – Everton has always been at the forefront of sport as a force for good. Now, as our country battles to defeat Covid-19 and emerge stronger than ever, everyone here at Everton embraces the responsibility and the vital role our new stadium can play in the nation’s recovery. Research by CBRE has found that our stadium project would deliver a £1.3bn boost to the economy, the potential for more than 15,000 new jobs (up to 12,000 during the construction phase), and £32m of income to local families. The project will also help attract and accelerate other developments in the area, worth an additional £650m. Liverpool City Council’s much-needed council tax receipts would be boosted by more than £2.2m, and there would be an uplift of up to £1.7m in business rates income. Finally, when the country is fully recovered, it is estimated that a new stadium will help attract 1.4m visitors to the city. Everton is proud of its commitment to regeneration, preserving culture and heritage, and creating positive social value. The stadium development is part of what has been called “The People’s Project”, incorporating a new home for the club and also an innovative community-led legacy development on the site of our current stadium, Goodison Park. That legacy will maintain our presence in a part of Liverpool we have called home for almost 130 years and comprise housing, health, community retail, education and youth facilities, all with the aim of building on our unique reputation as “The People’s Club”. People may think taking on the role of property developer might be alien to a football club. However, over the past six years, the club and our pioneering official charity, Everton in the Community, has invested more than £10m into converting derelict buildings and land into thriving education, social and community facilities. Football is so much more than a beautiful game. It can – and should – be a force for good and deliver tangible community and societal benefits beyond the creation of jobs and a positive economic impact. It is estimated that a new stadium move, combined with a community-led regeneration of Goodison Park, will generate £237m of societal value for Liverpool. While the global pandemic created a period of transition for both the football and development industries, we continued preparing our planning application and consulting with stakeholders. Throughout this period, just like any developer, we had to appreciate that not everything was in our control. But we remained on track to deliver what was required of us. Guiding the journey In February, we received unanimous planning approval from Liverpool City Council for our stadium and legacy proposals. This came after a long period of consultation that saw overwhelming support from both sides of the House of Commons and House of Lords, the backing of the Northern Powerhouse Partnership, Premier League and the FA, and support from both local mayors (City and City Region), Liverpool’s business community, the people of the Liverpool City Region – regardless of their football allegiances – and our own supporters. Everton supporters around the world have helped shape and guide us to this point in our journey. We have worked with them to ensure that our new stadium will harness the passion of our fans as we aim to create a matchday like no other. We have looked at stadiums around the world to understand what makes them iconic and what we can learn and will take inspiration from them all. While there is still a lot of work to do, it is so exciting to be at the true starting line of this project, knowing what lies ahead. We have brought our club to this historic moment. And I know we have a thrilling future to look forward to. Prof Denise Barrett-Baxendale is chief executive of Everton Football Club Read more about the power of stadiums in regional development in EG’s UK Cities Guide, available on 4 June.