Edinburgh's Sigma Capital launches £39m Liverpool scheme

Sigma Capital Group, the Edinburgh-based investment firm focused on property rental and urban regeneration projects, has pushed the button on a major mixed-use development in Liverpool.

Graham Barnet, chief executive of Sigma Capital. Picture: Paul Dodds

The firm said that funding for the £39 million scheme, which forms part of its long-standing partnership with Liverpool City Council, had been secured with new funding partner Curlew Student Trust.

The development, adjacent to Lime Street Station in the centre of the city, will comprise 28,000 square feet of retail and leisure units, including a 101-bedroom hotel, pre-let to Premier Inn, and a 412-bedroom student accommodation building.

Sigma’s commercial development partner, Neptune Developments, will begin construction before the end of the year, with planning permission having already been obtained in August 2015.

Graham Barnet, chief executive of Sigma, said: “I am delighted to announce that we have secured funding for this major redevelopment in the heart of Liverpool, next to Lime Street Station, and would like to thank our partner, Neptune Developments, for all their efforts in managing the development aspects of the project on behalf of our partnership.

“The scheme forms part of the regeneration of the Lime Street and Knowledge Quarter areas, a project which is seen as a flagship development for the city.”

Steve Parry, managing director of Neptune Developments, added: “We are aiming to bring exciting new retail and leisure operators to the area and we are already making good progress in negotiations with a number of parties.

“We very much look forward to realising our efforts and creating a vibrant new neighbourhood in Liverpool.”

While Sigma’s focus has been on sites in Liverpool and Manchester, with the group also pushing into the Midlands and south of England, Barnet has previously said that an expansion into the Scottish market has not been ruled out.