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Top story
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All clear for Watson redevelopment
The Central Regeneration partnership comprising Merepark and Ballymore has received consent from Liverpool City Council's planning committee to redevelop and extend the Watson Building next to Lewis's in the city centre. The 70,000 sq ft seven-storey building will have two floors added and be extended onto the site of the former Rapid Hardware paint shop to form a 170,000 sq ft, 180-bedroom, four star hotel, for which an international hotel operator has already been secured. Merepark, along with Capital and Counties, also has £105m plans to create a mixed-use leisure scheme at Lewis's, which received approval in August.
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Deals
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Oval builds in the North West
Insurance broker Oval has strengthened its North West presence with the acquisition of Powell Insurance Brokers in Liverpool. Powell turns over £3.4m and has specialisms in construction and food and drink. Managing director Eliot Powell will continue to run the office. Oval has also made its first foray into North Wales, picking up Williams Insurance Brokers in Wrexham. 
Creditors lose out in Cains buy-back
Sudarghara and Ajmail Dusanj bought back the Cains brewery and the leasehold interest on nine pubs for £103,750 it has been revealed, just over six weeks after Robert Cain & Co was placed into administration with debts in the region of £50m. A report by administrators PricewaterhouseCoopers has found that trade creditors were owed nearly £8m, with pub landlords Punch and Nectar among the worst hit, while councils lost £800,000 in unpaid rates. The Bank of Scotland was owed £28m although this was secured against more than 100 properties. PWC said that unsecured creditors are "unlikely" to be paid back. Cains fell into financial difficulty following a reverse takeover of Honeycombe Leisure in 2007.
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Business
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Scrap new ports rates, says Chamber
Liverpool Chamber of Commerce has again called for the government to drop its plans to implement a new business rating system for ports that could mean businesses worth up to £400m are under threat of becoming insolvent. In a joint letter with the Hull & Humber Chamber to Communities and Local Government minister John Healey, the chamber said the legislation could be "catastrophic" to individual businesses and the port industry in general. Until now the Valuation Office Agency has assessed ports and set the business rates paid by the port authority to the local council, but the agency has now reassessed rates and decided they must be paid by the companies that use them instead. It is backdating payments to 2005.
Grant Thornton wins ACC contract
The Liverpool office of Grant Thornton has won a competitive tender to provide audit and tax services to the city's ACC Liverpool. The winning team included office managing partner Neil Sturmey, audit partner Kevin Engel and audit manager Emma Stoddart.
Anfield's prawn sandwich brigade grows
Restaurant chain Heathcotes, which manages Liverpool FC's Anfield Experience, has revealed that sales have increased 70 per cent since the corporate hospitality package was launched in December 2006. It is also predicting a 12 per cent rise in sales in the run up to Christmas, based on December 2007's figures.
Rapid response team to deal with Icelandic fall-out
The government has set up a rapid response unit that can be deployed to local authorities requiring assistance following the failures of Icelandic banks. The unit has been established by central government, the Local Government Association and the Improvement and Development Agency, to provide support to local authorities facing severe short-term difficulties. In a written Parliamentary answer, Communities Secretary Hazel Blears said that no council was facing problems with paying staff but that the unit would help with other issues.
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Property
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Smith and Sons signs up
Merseyside agent and auctioneer Smith and Sons has announced that as of December 2008 its auctions will be held under the brand Auction House Smith and Sons having negotiated a deal with Auction House to represent it in Liverpool and Wirral. Auction House is a rapidly growing network of independent auctioneers that looks to bring strong brand identity to its various regions. Smith and Sons is Merseyside's longest established property consultancy, dating back to 1840.
DevSec joins Alliance
Listed property business Development Securities has taken a 50 per cent stake in Property Alliance Group's £35m Axis office tower project at Deansgate Locks, Manchester. The scheme, designed by HKR Architects, will include 75,000 sq ft of grade A office space over 18 storeys including self-contained office suites of 4,500 sq ft. Development Securities said it had been keen to explore further Manchester opportunities following its successful project at CityPark.
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And finally...
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New Insider out this week
The September issue of Insider is out this week with a focus on the stars of tomorrow, in the shape of the 42 under 42 Class of 2008; and the visionaries of today, through the words of Peel supremo John Whittaker, ACC Liverpool chief executive Bob Prattey and Saatchi & Saatchi chief executive Kevin Roberts.
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Contact Us
Insider
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Manchester
M1 3HY
Telephone: +44 (0)161 907 9711
Email:
nw@insiderdaily.co.uk
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