Liverpool must be watchful when changing its defining image

Liverpool's waterfront is the jewel in the city's crown.

With the Pier Head and the grandeur of its Three Graces at its heart, the view of the city from the Wirral from across the River Mersey is our defining image. It is a landmark known the world over.

But, like many parts of any major city, the waterfront is evolving. It is of vital importance that its evolution is managed carefully.

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Last week, the city council appointed Rotterdam-based urban design and landscape architecture firm West 8 to work on a plan for the development of the waterfront over the next 25 years. With a scope that runs from Festival Gardens in the south of the city to Everton's new Bramley-Moore Dock stadium in the post-industrial northern docklands, the waterfront plan aims to ensure that future developments are knitted together as part of a coherent approach, complementing existing buildings while adding bold new aspects.

The existence of such a plan is encouraging. The waterfront is our greatest asset and any changes made to it should add to its character, not strip it of what makes it special.

For me, the key to that is ensuring that new buildings are diverse - both in terms of how they look and what they are used for - adding to the existing rich-tapestry of buildings of new and old which make up the most famous image of Liverpool. The council's plan, which has seven aims, includes the "conservation and enhancement of the significance of the city’s heritage assets", as well as "identifying key infrastructure needed to support the regeneration of the waterfront." That feels like a good place to start.

It feels especially important at the moment, as recent months have seen progress on a number of schemes which will make significant changes to the city's skyline.

A number of tower blocks are currently in construction around the city centre and more are on the way. Last week's Liverpool City Council planning meeting saw the approval granted for four tower blocks, ranging between nine and 11 storeys, at Love Lane and Pall Mall in Vauxhall.

Maybe most pertinently, the man behind the 40-storey West Tower - Liverpool's tallest building - is teaming up with Home Bargains' owner TJ Morris to build a cluster of skyscrapers on the King Edward Triangle on the edge of the city centre. The plans saw the council's cabinet agree to a £1.5m deal to release covenants and enable the construction of the residential skyscrapers.

The proposal has not proved popular with the businesses currently based on the industrial park within the King Edward Triangle, but it is an undeniably major development with the potential to define that part of the city.

Skyscrapers are central to the look and feel of a modern metropolis (nobody is going to pretend that Manhattan is not impressive or attractive) and blocks of flats are not to be sniffed at, but as this column has noted before, it occasionally feels like the only developments being proposed in Liverpool are apartments. It is undeniable that the entire country needs more homes, but the future of Liverpool's waterfront and skyline needs more to it than high-rise flats.

Take Deansgate in Manchester as an example. You could argue that it has been completely overwhelmed by ever-increasing towers - mainly housing apartments that most people simply cannot afford. Liverpool City Council says it wants the future of our city's waterfront to include developments which are more inclusive and benefit communities - that has to mean building more than luxury flats.

It is promising then that the defining development currently in progress on the Liverpool waterfront is Everton's new stadium, which should be transformative for Everton's fortunes and the ongoing regeneration of the Northern Docks. Visually, it is a bold, distinctive and exciting addition to the waterfront.

Though not yet completed It stands out, while still feeling in keeping with the area's maritime and docking heritage. It is a true statement addition to the waterfront.

However, not every development can be as sizable and significant as a state-of-the-art football stadium, but the changes to the skyline we should demand should include more infrastructure projects and buildings which could be the 21st century's answer to the Three Graces.

A key phrase in the council's waterfront is "to inspire excellence in quality of place and urban design". That must mean a diverse range of buildings - not just a mismatch of residential high rises.

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