Football Quarter

Football Quarter Latest News

Progress on the Football Quarter

21st May 2011

Keeping Everton in Our City (KEIOC) and Spirit Of Shankly (SOS) have been working together on supporting and enabling North Liverpool Regeneration by using the anchors of Everton FC and Liverpool FC to utilise the historical, tourism, leisure and monetary assets that both football clubs offer to help all members of the supporting communities.

The focus of this, the use of individual stadia to aid potential regeneration, was raised upon the launch of this concept in March 2010.

During the past twelve months we have held many constructive discussions with Liverpool City Council, The University of Liverpool, John Moores University, Everton FC, Community groups and others to develop the concept further towards the initial push for a feasibility study into 'The Football Quarter.' As part of these consultations Dr. Alan Southern from The University of Liverpool independently produced a report that attempts to identify the impact that 'The Football Quarter' could provide, how this can be assessed and examples of good use of football clubs to aid wider regeneration and community involvement.

The report gives examples of best practice at Leyton Orient, Juventus and Shimizu S-Pulse showing how a Football Club can aid regeneration and community involvement on a variety of levels and scales.

This report has been sent to Steve Rotheram (MP for Walton), Joe Anderson (Leader of Liverpool City Council), Everton FC, Liverpool FC, local councillors and other associated groups. It will form the basis of further work on the development of 'The Football Quarter' which will include input from all stakeholders and parties with relevant experience to define the concept further. Dr. Alan Southern added:

"The report looks at how impact from a Football Quarter can occur and how such impact can be measured and evaluated. It is an independent piece based on my work with students at the University of Liverpool. If realised, the Football Quarter would have a social and cultural affect on north Liverpool. I also believe that an argument can be made that it would deliver economic benefits to the local community and to the wider Liverpool city-region. However, to make this a reality requires a strong desire for change, a certain type of leadership and a commitment from the two clubs and city council to the local communities involved."

The report can be downloaded here.

The next stage, our own prospectus, which, centred on expert advice, will provide creative solutions and an overview, including a masterplan and illustrations, of the total concept. We are happy to report that this next step is already firmly underway and both KEIOC and SOS will be holding a city centre event later this year on the past, present and future of football in our great city.

Goodison Meeting and Online Petition

26th March 2010

Following KEIOC’s recent Goodison site visit with architects WCEC, Robert Elstone invited KEIOC into Goodison to deliver their “Past, Present and Future” presentation to the stadium team; also present were Labour Group leader Joe Anderson and Spirit of Shankly vice chair, Paul Rice.

The two hour meeting was an opportunity for both sides to listen to one another and understand each others position regarding the stadium.

Chair of KEIOC, Dave Kelly, explained “KEIOC empathize fully with Everton over the stadium situation; we’ve presented a Plan A which begins the phased redevelopment of Goodison within a football quarter involving LFC and other public and private interests. The quarter is nothing more than a concept developed by Everton and Liverpool fans at the moment, a concept which needs the support of the city council and other agencies to bring it to the next stage which would be a full feasibility study. KEIOC articulated their fears and reservations with regard to any possible ground move, yet If Everton need to move to a new stadium that project will be embraced so long as it meets the criteria set out in our presentation.”

Labour Group Leader Joe Anderson offered his full support for the Football Quarter concept. “The football club’s are an important part of the city regions economy, the concept of a Football Quarter helping the local communities and the city is something that I shall be pursuing after the May elections.”

Warren Bradley was unable to attend the meeting due to commitments in London but his enthusiasm for the Football Quarter concept has been well documented in the local media.

It was confirmed that whilst several potential sites for Everton were being evaluated, the current financial outlook, with regard to the economy, in particular the retail economy, means that the funding of any stadium project will be a considerable challenge and will require the full cooperation of the city council. It was made clear that all options are being thoroughly investigated.

Paul Rice, vice chair of the Spirit of Shankly group said “It’s good to see the professional approach being taken by Robert and Everton, I hope that this approach and the opportunity to present will be reciprocated by Liverpool FC’s senior management team to the Sprit of Shankly group; the Football Quarter represents a real opportunity for the club’s to give something back to the communities they’ve been a part of for over a century.”

It is imperative that the financial impact of a football quarter should be demonstrated to all parties involved before an informed decision on the concept can be taken; to facilitate this KEIOC and the Spirit of Shankly group, under the banner of all together now, have launched an online petition that can be found here.

John Moores University Interview

25th March 2010

Students at Liverpool Screen School at Liverpool John Moores University have recently interviewed Paul Gardner of Spirit of Shankly and Dave Kelly of Keeping Everton In Our City concerning the Football Quarter concept .

You can listen to the interview on the JMU Journalism website. Please note that you will need to have Adobe Flash player installed on your web browser.

View more images

Press Conference Report

14th March 2010

To the assembled media Liam Fogarty introduced the author of “across the park”, Peter Lupson, who opened the proceedings with stories of the much maligned John Houlding and George Mahon, charismatic tales of how the clubs, whilst separate, had an overwhelming sense of style and dignity; worshipping together, dinning at their opponents ground after derby games and how in 1906 it was the Liverpool team who met the FA cup winning Everton team at Lime St to lead the congratulations.

On the exact day the split occurred 118 years ago, at their original meeting place prior to 1892, KEIOC and the Spirit of Shankly group jointly promoted a press conference to officially launch the All Together Now campaign; a campaign whose aims and objectives would surly warm the hearts of our founding fathers; the promotion of a football quarter to celebrate the world famous duopoly, a concept that is designed to appeal to supporters, residents and the business communities; to deliver tangible benefits to the many, to act as a catalyst for the regeneration across north Liverpool.

The panel, consisting of leading KEIOC and Spirit of Shankly members spoke passionately and with knowledge on a proposal that has seen unprecedented support across the divide; leader of the Labour group at the council, Joe Anderson, spoke with equal passion and support of the concept as had council leader Warren Bradley earlier in the day and leading academics in the city.

Later that night Granada Reports ran a mini feature on the story as did Sky Sports News the following day in addition to all the radio and press exposure.

The strategic alliance will now pursue those they have written to in a joint open letter asking for support for a feasibility study into the viability of the concept.

An open letter to leaders in our city and the two football clubs requesting their assistance in commissioning a feasibility study, dated 12th March, has been issued. Click here to read it.

A selection of images from the press conference have been posted here courtesy of photographer John Johnson.

Press Release

11th March 2010

March 12th 1892 is a historic date in footballing folklore; it’s the momentous day that two footballing groups at odds split. Liverpool Football Club was established at Anfield three days later and Everton Football Club went across Stanley Park to Goodison Park ; an event which instigated over a century of banter and endless argument that has divided friends, families and loved ones and has influenced the very social fabric of the city.

On the 118th anniversary of this famous event, the supporters’ groups, Keeping Everton In Our City and the Spirit of Shankly, are so concerned for the future of their clubs that they have put aside their legendary rivalry and as one, under the banner of “All Together Now”, they call for the establishment of a Football Quarter around Stanley Park in the city of Liverpool, to uphold their football clubs at the highest level, for the benefit of the fans, the community and the city.

The park was established for the people and the two clubs have grown up either side of it and, together with it, form a great and historic sporting resource. The Football Quarter in and around the park will contain the two stadia together with educational, recreational, leisure and community facilities. It would be a centre of excellence for health and sports science and research and a genuine catalyst for the local regeneration of the Walton and Anfield communities. It would share a sustainable infrastructure based on improved parking, roads, rail connectivity and general public transport.

It would create a great draw and showcase for the hundreds and hundreds of thousands of anticipated visitors to the city. A tourist destination providing increased employment and visitor spend towards the city’s target of 14,000 jobs and £2bn a year by 2020.