Everton FC play their first competitive match at Hill Dickinson Stadium today, a site which is hoped to drive a renaissance in the city's northern docks
Mark Murphy from Murphy's Distillery, stands outside his bar, near the Hill Dickinson Stadium
Mark Murphy outside his business on Regent Road(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
Setting up shop in Liverpool's Northern Docks had personal significance for Mark Murphy. Along with his brothers Terry and Simon, Mark, 52, from Walton, runs Murphy's Distillery - a bar and function room on Regent Road in Vauxhall, minutes away from Everton's new Hill Dickinson Stadium.
The family business grew from Liverpool John Moores University lecturer Mark distilling gin in his free time. In 2020, they looked for a site to turn into a bar and to sell their gin from.
They were drawn to Regent Road, less by the proposition of a new Everton stadium, but by the Ten Streets developments of recent years which has created a hospitality hub on the northern fringes of the city centre. But it was a green plaque on the dock wall opposite their unit that sold it to them.
That plaque reads: "Through these gates passed most of the 1.3m Irish migrants who fled the Great Famine and 'took the ship' to Liverpool in the years 1845-52."
Among them were Mark's great great grandparents. They didn't know each other at the time but would meet in Liverpool and settle down to start a family on Scotland Road. Almost 200 years later, the Murphys would choose Regent Road as the base for their family business, bringing it full circle.
Mark told the ECHO: "In the 1880s, our great, great grandparents came over from Wexford, Ireland for a better life. Back in the day, the docks would have been really busy.
"Regent Road would have been really busy and the gate opposite is where they would have come off the boat. They would have stepped out onto this road and the first building they would have stood in front of would have been this building."
Regent Road and Liverpool's Northern Docks are a reminder of Liverpool's affluent maritime past. "The gateway to the rest of the world", was how Mark described it.
But deindustrialisation of the latter half of the 20th century led to decline. The port's importance waned and many of the docks fell into disrepair.
It is hoped that Everton's new 52,769-seater stadium, which will host its first competitive match today as the Blues face Brighton, will be the catalyst for that. Construction of Hill Dickinson Stadium commenced in 2021 and it has found a new use for the semi-derelict dock.
A general aerial view of Hill Dickinson Stadium, home stadium of Everton ahead of the pre-season friendly match between Everton and AS Roma
A general aerial view of Hill Dickinson Stadium, home stadium of Everton ahead of the pre-season friendly match between Everton and AS Roma
Everton are also hoping to purchase the neighbouring Nelson Dock to aid its infrastructure in the area but the football club is not the only organisation building nearby. Property giant Peel's Liverpool Waters scheme, a long-term regeneration programme designed to repurpose the post-industrial Northern Docks into new neighbourhoods, is ongoing - with a new park and housing development planned at Central Dock and a cluster of skyscrapers to be built at the King Edward Triangle on Gibraltar Row, at the edge of the city centre.
That project, backed by Home Bargains' Tom Morris and Beetham's Hugh Frost, aims to build the new tallest building in Liverpool. Meanwhile, a proposed New Town development known as Liverpool North could see 10,000 homes built north of the city centre, across Everton, Anfield and Kirkdale and into Bootle.
It is vital this delivers meaningful change for the north of the city, according to University of Liverpool professor Michael Parkinson, 81, who has been chronicling the change in the city's fortunes since the 1980s. He is an ambassador for the university's Heseltine Institute, which aims to lead debate around and create solutions to urban challenges.
Professor Parkinson's work saw him chart Liverpool's post-war struggles to the nadir of the 1980s. But his 2019 book 'Beyond the Brink' looked at its recovery in the 1990s and 2000s - he told the ECHO this renaissance was focused on the city centre and its southern area, from which North Liverpool did not benefit.
He hopes the new stadium at Bramley-Moore Dock can correct that, saying: "North Liverpool was an area we neglected for a long time. We fixed the city centre, fixed the south but didn't do the north.
The Hill Dickinson Stadium
The Hill Dickinson Stadium(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
"Now you have real evidence that people have realised that there's a challenge and an opportunity. The next decade will need to see the north get some of the benefits that some of the other parts of the city have got.
"Everton's statement with the stadium has not only said we're a proper club, it's not only said 'come to Liverpool - it's a great place to see', it's actually said 'we're a northern, anchor institution'.
"The fact it shifted from one part of the north to another part means they have to make sure they don't leave the Everton area un-regenerated, but it has concentrated minds.
"It's a jigsaw puzzle and it's a domino effect. If the club hadn't made a huge investment and said 'look what you can do here' and made a high-quality statement it might not have happened. This is not a Tesco football stadium, this is a really significant architectural statement."
The new Everton stadium under construction at Bramley-Moore Dock in 2023
The new Everton stadium under construction at Bramley-Moore Dock in 2023
Professor Parkinson described Hill Dickinson Stadium as a "really important statement of intent", which stands to boost the visitor economy and the city's reputation. However, he believes it's key that it benefits the local community and doesn't displace them.
He explained: "I think getting the housing right is important but then I think it's about creating economic opportunity through jobs - getting stuff going through the Ten Streets area is important. I think the Tom Morris and Hugh Frost investment at King Edward is going to be the front door of North Liverpool, so that should create some jobs."
The professor added: "The key thing is getting the balance right, so that in the process of getting development you don't squeeze out people. That's always a terribly tricky thing - that's why you need affordable housing, that's why you need community facilities like GPs, dentists, nurseries, schools.
"It should be about placemaking, which has got a mix of people, a mix of activity, a mix of housing, so it's not just high-rise blocks for expensive workers."
As well as Peel's plans, there are a number of property developments in progress in the Northern Docks. Work continues at the Tobacco Warehouse and the Bonded Tea Warehouse on Great Howard Street was sold to Irish firm Harcourt Developments earlier this year.
One scheme is nearing completion is Hartley Locks - a development by housing association Torus, found on Lightbody Street. The 195-home development is a £50m investment in North Liverpool and the first residents will move in a matter of weeks.
Torus's managing director Chris Bowen told the ECHO at the site this week that Everton's presence in the area will draw more development. He believes the onus is now on investors to recognise the potential of North Liverpool.
Mr Bowen said: "I think the football stadium has had a massive impact on the desirability of this area - the reputation. The fact that you can see from the sites that we can see from within the development, the potential is enormous for even further regeneration.
Chris Bowen, MD of Torus Developments, at the Hartley Locks Development, overlooking the Hill Dickinson Stadium
Chris Bowen, MD of Torus Developments, at the Hartley Locks Development, overlooking the Hill Dickinson Stadium
"The stadium is such a fantastic anchor to the economy and to the tourism sector. This is a part of North Liverpool which, over years, has suffered. But it's probably the most exciting part of the North West in terms of regeneration opportunities.
"I think football stadia can have that catalytic impact on places. We've seen that in other parts of the country and the demand we have for this shows this is an area that people will want to come and live."
Hartley Locks is a rent-to-buy scheme, meaning tenants pay 80% of the market rent with the aim of saving for a deposit. Mr Bowen thinks it is an example that others should follow so that a post-industrial space becomes a thriving neighbourhood.
He said: "There are plenty of opportunities around the residential markets - I think for private investors as much as housing associations. There's a huge land supply as well that I think can be tapped into.
"The waterfront is a huge appeal but as you go away from it and into the established areas, given what we know demand is like in this part of the city, there's a lot of industrial, brownfield sites, which I think could be converted into housing and residential uses.
"The stadium will have a positive effect on other investments in the area. I think you'll see more retail, more leisure, more commercial space, such as hotels and restaurants.
"It creates a dynamic and a use here that isn't just about matchdays. You can see that in other parts of the country - you've got a fully functioning place every day of the week.
The Hartley Locks Development
The Hartley Locks Development(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
For Professor Parkinson, enhancing the area should be the priority of the city's ambitions. He believes the Northern Docklands are at the very core of what makes Liverpool the place it is and improving the fortunes of those who live there is an overdue mission.
He explained: "When I finished my book in 2019 I said that the north is a stain on the consciousness of the city. We have not invested enough.
"The waterfront to North Liverpool is why we are the city we are - that's why we were an imperial city with all the downside of that. This is one of our primary assets and is a huge opportunity to build places fit for Scousers.
"It's really important in all this development that we don't forget who we are. This is a very different place, a very special place - people are different here and we must get this right."
"It's the focus of Everton on that area which has underlined for everybody - once people start asking what else is up there, why can't you get there - then you start to look at the housing problems, the health problems, the education problems and all the rest of it.
"Suddenly it becomes an issue you can't ignore. North Liverpool never had a big, powerful regeneration vehicle with a lot of money and powers.
"You have to hope that will happen now. You need strategic vision, I think you need ambition."
For now, the immediate focus is building a matchday culture around the new stadium. Evertonians descended on County Road's pubs and takeaways for more than a century but this year sees those matchday traditions change.
Development at Ten Streets in recent years has meant there are some bars and venues in the area and the long-standing Bramley-Moore pub is now in a prime position to serve match-goers. More are popping up now, in the hope that the stadium can drive economic growth in the area.
At Murphy's, Mark comes from a family of Blues - and all are season ticket holders. They had not intended to build a matchday bar but they have already seen the footfall increase as a result of the new stadium being ready to go.
He said: "When we started getting news that they were starting to develop the ground and they were going to build on Bramley-Moore, we were also getting a lot of interest in this place for private functions.
Mark Murphy from Murphy's Distillery
Mark Murphy from Murphy's Distillery(Image: Andrew Teebay Liverpool Echo)
"Because the footfall wasn't here then, we ended up going down the route of private hire, it kept us going. The idea for us was to keep going until the stadium opens.
"We were hoping businesses would still be good so that we could cover our overheads and be here when the ground opened. As it was, we are.
"The friendly against Roma (Everton's final test event at the stadium) was really busy - it was 52,000 and it was a full house.
"We struggled for a few years, but now it looks good. We're where we wanted to be. We've waited five years - it's five years this month since we got the keys for this place. And now the stadium's opening, we're going to be alright."