Preservation move threat to £100m Hope Street revamp
Feb 26 2008
by Liza Williams, Liverpool Daily Post
DOUBTS were raised yesterday about the future of a £100m Liverpool development, as a former hospital central in the plans achieved listed status.
Campaigners submitted an application to English Heritage to list two buildings on Hope Street – including former homeopathic hospital the Hahnemann Building – which are currently subject to plans for conversion into a boutique hotel, apartments and shops.
The Hahnemann has now been granted Grade II listed status but Maghull Developments, which has put forward a planning application for the part demolition and part conversion are confident the listing will not affect a planning committee decision due today.
The three storey building was built in 1886-7 and was designed by architects F&G Holme and funded by Sir Henry Tate as a free gift to Liverpool citizens.
It was originally called the Liverpool Hahnemann Hospital and Dispensary, being renamed the Liverpool Homeopathic Hospital in 1948.
In recent years it was used as part of Liverpool JMU’s School of Art and Design.
The current plans would convert the building into a hotel with restaurant, bar, spa and conference facilities. This would involve its partial demolition.
Campaigners are now waiting to hear whether a application to list neighbouring Josephine Butler House, also included in the development plans, has been successful.
It was formerly the Radium Institute, and was one of the first places in the country for patients to receive cancer treatments.
Cllr Berni Turner, executive member for the Environment said: “When I saw the plans for the Hahnemann Building I, along with Cllr Flo Clucas, immediately contacted English Heritage to see if we could get this amazing building listed.
“It was the first homeopathic dispensary in the country and the second homeopathic hospital and we do not want to lose a building with an amazing history such as that.
“We have been supported by Save Our City and other organisations and this success in safeguarding part of our history shows the value to the city of having a champion for the historic environment.
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“Now we are campaigning to have Josephine Butler House, which is threatened with demolition, listed.”
But Mike Hanlon, managing director of Maghull Developments is confident the development will still go ahead.
He said: “We welcome the news that the Hahnemann building has been granted Grade II listed status and we have worked closely with the local planning authority, conservation officer, Victorian Society and English Heritage for two years to secure this.
“We presented our scheme to the city council planning officers on the basis that the building already had listed status.
“We feel confident that our plans will enhance the Hope Street area in general.”
Wayne Colquhoun, chair of Liverpool Preservation Trust added: “We need some kind of heritage bureau to make sure buildings like this are not threatened in the first place.”
Source:
Liverpool Daily Post
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