Knowsley Council has started a public consultation on one of the largest housing developments in the North-west.
The local authority has opened for views on a masterplan for Halsnead, a development worth an estimated £270m which will provide more than 1,600 homes over a 15-year period.
The development was one of 14 granted garden village status by the government earlier this month, giving it access to a £6m government fund over the next two financial years.
Halsnead is situated at the junction of the M62 and M57 in Merseyside, and the new development will include a new country park, schools, local amenities as well as the new homes.
The consultation, produced by the council with support from Turley and Mott MacDonald, targets a 2018 start date for the site’s first residential developments, with an average of about 93 homes delivered per year through to 2035.
The client expects to begin with two housebuilders on the £270m scheme initially, with a potential increase to four over the course of the project’s delivery.
Graham Morgan, Knowsley’s cabinet member for regeneration and economic development, said the scheme was “the biggest change that Knowsley will see in the next 15 years”.
“Historically the site formed part of the Halsnead Park Estate and has been out of bounds to the local community. The masterplan will change this by opening up the area and enhancing it for the benefit of local people and new residents,” he said.
“We want people to get involved in the consultation on the draft masterplan and have their say. This is their chance to guide the development of this exciting and unique opportunity.”
