Liverpool Lime Street regeneration: Government will not hold inquiry

The Futurist Cinema, which opened in 1912, will be demolished along with nearby buildings

The government will not hold an inquiry into regeneration plans for Lime Street, Liverpool City Council said.

The authority's planning committee earlier this month backed a £35m proposal for the street's eastern side.

Campaigners condemned the decision, which will mean the demolition of the 103-year-old Futurist Cinema building.

The council said it was not possible to save the building or its facade due to its "poor structural condition" after many years of deterioration.

Liverpool Mayor Joe Anderson said the cinema was "close to my heart, as I know it is to many others" but two surveyors' reports had concluded "that there was simply no way it could be salvaged".

"There comes a point when you have to accept the inevitable and move forward and the government's decision allows us to do that," he added.

The council said there would be "an entertainment and media hub" in the restored ABC cinema

The national Cinema Theatre Association (CTA) earlier this week said the Futurist Cinema had "been allowed to rot away" for more than 35 years since its closure.

Steve Parry, managing director of Neptune Developments - the company behind the Lime Street plans - said the local Save the Futurist campaign group had "accepted that there is very little that can be saved".

"It's been frustrating to have London-based interest groups trying to derail the project," Mr Parry said, adding that his company had "demonstrated our commitment to conservation" with plans for an entertainment hub at the former ABC cinema.

He described the decision that the Communities and Local Government Secretary would not hold an inquiry was "a great result" as regeneration plans would have otherwise been "jeopardised" and "development stalled for up to two years".

A council spokesman said Lime Street's regeneration would include "radically redesigned buildings" and incorporate a hotel, shops, restaurants and student accommodation.

Mr Anderson added the plans would "bring Lime Street up to a much higher standard than it has been for decades".