Liverpool City Council is moving ahead with its £260m project to redevelop the Anfield area after “overwhelming support” for the proposals.
The project, which also has the support of the Your Housing Group, is set to create 700 jobs and refurbish 500 homes around Liverpool’s football stadium.
The plans include restoring Stanley Park, providing a food hub and an area to grow fruit and vegetables, as well as new shopping facilities and the creation of a major new pedestrian-friendly avenue and public square.
The Anfield Project asked 1,700 people from the affected areas how they felt about the proposals.
Despite causing 700 houses to be demolished, 97% of people believed it was important to improve the street scene and environment, while 85% agreed with the plans for a revitalised high street.
Mayor Joe Anderson told the Liverpool Echo: “We have had overwhelming support from local residents and businesses for our plans and there is unarguable public interest in driving these proposals forward.”
Part of the scheme involves Liverpool Football Club extending Anfield stadium, which sits on Walton Breck Road.
More than 90 per cent of people supported the proposal for the road to become a more vibrant community centre, both on and off match days.
Members of Liverpool Council Cabinet are meeting on Friday, where they will be asked to approve the use of Compulsory Purchase Orders (CPOs) to move the scheme forward.
The council claims that CPOs will only be used as a last resort, with ongoing negotiations with property owners over possible sales.
“We remain confident that we will be able to acquire properties without having to resort to CPOs but want to get agreement for them should they be required. The legal justification for CPOs, should they be needed, is unequivocal,” Mayor Anderson added.
“The people of Anfield have been let down too often in the past. We will not let them down again.”