Garston News Views and Discussion

[Kev]

THE proposed closure of one of South Liverpool’s oldest schools, St Francis of Assisi Catholic primary in Garston, was yesterday delayed by a year. Read

[Kev]

Sir Alfred Jones Memorial Hospital in Garston, is getting up to £10m to be invested in a refurbished or new building to be completed by 2009. more

[Kev]

Has anyone noticed the smart tidying up/ restoration of Seddon House on the corner opposite the old Garston Hotel?

[Jericho]

Has anyone noticed the smart tidying up/ restoration of Seddon House on the corner opposite the old Garston Hotel?

Certainly have.

[taffy]

Has anyone noticed the smart tidying up/ restoration of Seddon House on the corner opposite the old Garston Hotel?

Yes but I didn't think much of the roof job last time I saw it !!! The whole of this junction with St Mary's Rd is being renovated. One thing I've noticed in Liverpool over the last year is that a lot of empty property above old shops is being brought back into residential use. I suspect this is mainly to house the influx of immigrants into Liverpool. I think there are govenment grants for these types of renovations for it makes economic sense to do the work

[taffy]

Has anyone noticed the smart tidying up/ restoration of Seddon House on the corner opposite the old Garston Hotel?

Well I braved the heavy rain to take these photos. It looks like a Manchester firm has renovated the 1885 property. Oh dear !!

[Kev]

Morning Taffy Great pics and thanks.

Oh dear about the Manc firm

Is the hotel opposite in use? That looks like it had a make over too, yet still has the odd window borded up.

[Kev]

MORE than £2m of highway improvement and environmental work has begun in Garston.

Regeneration agency Liverpool Land Development Company has appointed engineering experts the Halcrow Group to carry out the £2.2m project in Horrocks Avenue.

They say businesses and residents will benefit from the work to the key route that links Liverpool John Lennon airport and the main business sites in Speke and Halewood with the new Liverpool South Parkway interchange.

Work is expected to continue for 30 weeks until next January.

Source: ICLiverpool

[taffy]

Morning Taffy Great pics and thanks.

Oh dear about the Manc firm

Is the hotel opposite in use? That looks like it had a make over too, yet still has the odd window borded up.

I think so but I know nothing about the hotel I'm afraid

[Kev]

Its an impressive building with that dome at the top. Good to see the old Graham's Cartons site developed too (I used to think it was Graham's Cartoons when I was a kid)

[taffy]

This was once a thriving street full of busy shops. For a variety of reasons, many of these have now closed together with associated banks etc. I have noticed in recent months the beginning of a revival of the street with a number of new mainly service type shops (cafes, hairdressers etc) opening. Let's hope this continues.

Another feature is that the space above these empty shops is starting to be brought back into use as residential accomodation. One such building which clearly illustrates its 1868 Welsh Builder origin is given below. Photo taken July 20th, 2007 together with the same building in 2005.

[Kev]

Excellent Taffy, I hope it continues too . With the Horrocks Av. works beginning plus the housing being built, Garston should continue to thrive

Still wish Joysave was still there

[Jericho]

One of the downsides of turning former commercial properties into residential accomodation is that if it isn't done sympathetically it can have the effect of shaping the direction regeneration takes in a particular area. For example, and maybe it's the rain or choice of colours but in Taffy's photo, Seddon House looks a bit of a bodge job. When I saw the work going on from the car my initial fantasy was that it was going to be a modern continental bar and eaterie specialising in every Cains product and the best of Belgian beer. When it became clear that this wasn't happening, I thought that it would be made over so that it would look as though it had always been residential. If this is the end product, whilst better than semi-dereliction, it might set a tone for the rest of St Mary's Road that could mean more of the same instead of a touch of Lark Lane.

[taffy]

One of the downsides of turning former commercial properties into residential accomodation is that if it isn't done sympathetically it can have the effect of shaping the direction regeneration takes in a particular area. For example, and maybe it's the rain or choice of colours but in Taffy's photo, Seddon House looks a bit of a bodge job. When I saw the work going on from the car my initial fantasy was that it was going to be a modern continental bar and eaterie specialising in every Cains product and the best of Belgian beer. When it became clear that this wasn't happening, I thought that it would be made over so that it would look as though it had always been residential. If this is the end product, whilst better than semi-dereliction, it might set a tone for the rest of St Mary's Road that could mean more of the same instead of a touch of Lark Lane.

Agreed, few Liverpool shop to living accomodation conversions are done at all sympathetically. Having said that, I saw one in Toxteth today on I think North Hill St. The complete shop frontage over the whole block had been removed and replaced with matching yellow brick and correctly proportioned windows and doors. Another on Mill St, Toxteth is a complete mess but the building was a complete wreck before this crude restoration took place.

[Kev]

29th July 2007

Seddon Road Garston







The Old Garston Hotel Site and Village

















Under The Bridge