The demolition of a local landmark means a landmark £1 billion regeneration project on the edge of Liverpool's city centre can move into its next phase.
The demolition of the former Smithdown Lane Police Station, situated within the Paddington Village South project, has now finished.
The clearance work marks a milestone in the site's masterplan, orchestrated jointly by Liverpool City Council and the University of Liverpool, as it means the next phase of the tech-focused development can get under way.
The existing Paddington Village site already houses the Spine Building offering premium Grade A office accommodation, a multi-level car park, and the Novotel Liverpool Paddington Village Hotel, reports .
The vision for the Paddington South masterplan seeks to "super charge" the city's research, development and innovation sector, while aiming to create a vibrant new neighbourhood for the area.
At the heart of the 9-acre scheme lies a reimagined public green space surrounding Grove Street, targeting a 10% boost in biodiversity as part of the city's broader urban greening initiative, alongside fresh active travel connections linking to the wider City cycle network.
As it demolished Smithdown Lane Police Station, lead contractor Morgan Sindall Construction has committed to recycling and reusing as much of the existing materials as possible.
In collaboration with local charity ReciproCity, the firm ensured that furniture from the building was recycled and donated to local charities and businesses, preventing over 250 office desks and chairs, among other items, from ending up in landfill.
Minister for Local Growth, Alex Norris, MP, said: "The Paddington South site is set to become a hub for research and innovation, driving growth and opportunities in Liverpool's Knowledge Quarter and beyond, helping us deliver on our Plan for Change.
"Liverpool has always been at the forefront with new ideas and innovation so it's exciting that the project has entered this new phase, and I look forward to seeing it progress in the months ahead."
Councillor Liam Robinson, Leader of Liverpool City Council, said: "The clearance of the old police station at Paddington South is a landmark moment in our journey to ensuring Liverpool becomes one of Europe's leading R&D centres in science innovation.
"An expanded Paddington Village is vital to the city's future economic growth and to creating a conveyor belt of high skilled jobs. Once delivered, this former brownfield site will become the engine room for the delivery of our wider Investment Zone plans for the coming decade and beyond.
"I'm delighted the focus on providing a world-class development is as much on sustainability and creating a new green lung in the city and look forward to seeing the masterplan for the site take shape and develop."
Professor Tim Jones, Vice Chancellor at the University of Liverpool, said: "We are excited about this latest milestone in the development of Paddington South. This site provides us with an exciting opportunity to realise a step-change in our research and development activities in areas where we are already rated as world-leading.
"We are particularly passionate about the important benefits the development will have for our city in terms of jobs, reputation, wealth generation and more."
Colin Sinclair, CEO at Knowledge Quarter Liverpool, added: "Paddington Village is intrinsic to the future success of the KQ Liverpool innovation district, with the capability to help create upwards of 10,000 new, highly-skilled jobs in the city region, building on our existing strengths in life sciences, robotics engineering and materials chemistry.
"The provision of green space and other amenities is crucial in creating a genuine sense of place and attracting people to live and work here. We look forward to supporting Morgan Sindall and the city council in their efforts to complete this next phase of work – taking us a step closer to realising the enormous potential of Paddington Village."
