World-class architect to design 22-storey city tower
7 Jun 2006
THE architect who designed the world's tallest building has unveiled plans for an iconic tower block as part of Grosvenor's redevelopment of Liverpool.
US-based Cesar Pelli believes the 22-storey scheme opposite the Albert Dock will provide a stunning gateway to the £920m Grosvenor redevelopment.
It will also form a key cornerstone of the new Chavasse Park on the Liverpool waterfront.
The other corner plot will house a hotel and apartment block inspired by the famous Royal Crescent of Bath.
Grosvenor has submitted a formal planning application for both schemes after detailed discussions with English Heritage and other conservation and design agencies. The two Chavasse Park schemes will cost £100m, and the aim is to start work later this year and complete the buildings by 2008.
Argentine-born Mr Pelli was hired by Grosvenor as the master planner for the western part of the Paradise Street scheme and he created the park-in-the-sky idea for Chavasse Park with a massive below ground car park.
This is the first time his Connecticut practice has designed a building in Liverpool. Mr Pelli is best known for the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lumpur, at 452m, the highest building in the world when it was built in 1998.
City planning managers are now studying details of the two schemes before submission to the planning committee in the summer. The Pelli building will house 330 apartments as well as offices, with restaurants and cafes fronting Chavasse Park.
The building, with a concrete frame and steel and glass facade. will range in height from nine to 22 storeys, making it the tallest structure in the Paradise Street scheme.
Grosvenor's project manager for the two schemes, James Alderson said: "These two buildings will make a major contribution to Liverpool's great waterfront. They have been designed in consultation with English Heritage and other bodies because of the World Heritage site.
"The hotel will form a great crescent surrounding one part of Chavasse Park with restaurants and cafes facing the new park. It is not too dissimilar to the famous crescent at Bath." It is thought that the Hilton Group are in advanced negotiations to operate the 206-bedroom hotel. The building will also house 68 apartments, reached through a separate entrance.
William Butler, a partner in Pelli Clarke Pelli, said: "We are delighted to be working in Liverpool and Cesar has applied his well established philosophy to our building.
"It fully respects the nearby Three Graces and we believe will make a stunning addition to your waterfront.
"Our philosophy is to respond to the place, to the purpose and to the wishes of the client. It means that all Pelli Clarke Pelli buildings are unique because they are designed for a particular site. Our building and the crescent-shaped hotel building will form a fantastic frame for Chavasse Park."
The Cesar Pelli building will also have a 260-place car park reached through the entrance ramp to the public car park beneath Chavasse Park.
The Pelli team is working is working on the project with Liverpool architects Brock Carmichael. The hotel has been designed by London architect Michael Squire.
Grosvenor project director Rodney Holmes said: "We believe these two buildings will look magnificent along Wapping.
"The development is being promoted by Grosvenor, but there is a possibility of a dual partnership for one or both of the buildings. We are currently in detailed negotiations with a number of potential partners."
By Larry Neild, Daily Post
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