Doors open to brighter homes at Ellergreen
Residents are being given the keys to their new homes as the total regeneration of the Boot Estate takes another step closer.The official launch of 200 new homes on the former Boot Estate, now known as Ellergreen, takes place on Friday after nearly 50 homes for sale have reached completion and a further forty two tenants have already moved into the elegant properties built by developers New City Vision and run by Cobalt Housing.
All homes are expected to be occupied by March 2008 - when work is likely to start on a further 350 homes in Phase II of the scheme.
Leader of Liverpool City Council, Warren Bradley, said:
"As confidence is growing in Liverpool we are now beginning to see regeneration taking hold in neighbourhoods beyond the city centre and this is very much the case in the Alt Valley Neighbourhood Management Area.
"The Ellergreen development we are now celebrating in Norris Green Ward is something we can take great pride in. Alt Valley is improving and the new homes we see today are part of this continuing story of successful regeneration."
The new development consists of two, three and four-bedroom homes. Each home is bigger than average (up to 60 feet square), and provides space for families to grow and settle long-term.
All homes have fenced off gardens to provide a safe and relaxing haven for residents and include safe and secure parking areas for cars. Ellergreen is also a designated 'Homezone', which will restrict cars to a speed limit of 20mph, to provide safer streets for all.
Councillor Marilyn Fielding said:
"This is a superb development. But while it is important to celebrate the handover of these first homes, we are aware that housing alone cannot rebuild a community. In recent years we have seen considerable investment in infrastructure, community facilities and new and improved services within this area.
"We now have excellent leisure and community facilities in the immediate vicinity, an improved primary school at Monksdown and wider economic regeneration opportunities being realised at Stonebridge Park. All this means Ellergreen will not only have been remarkably transformed but sustainable in the long-term."
Councillor Flo Clucas, who initially kick-started work on the estate, said:
"This is a great opportunity to celebrate the progress we have made and to look forward to the future.
"We have truly reached a milestone in the regeneration of the Boot Estate and I am delighted to see that the development has now become a reality. I applaud the hard work and dedication of everyone involved in making this happen. In the past three years we have been able to transform an estate which has faced problems dating back almost 40 years. It is a truly remarkable transformation."
The further redevelopment of the estate will be through a partnership between the city council and Inpartnership.