Photographs have emerged showing “naked” apartments inside a city center apartment block owned by developer Elliot Lawless.
A real estate consultant told ECHO that about 160 units in the old Paramount building have been stripped of all furniture.
The Paramount scheme was set up to turn the former Odeon cinema site on London Road into a 488-bed student accommodation block. But the plan ran into problems and stalled in 2015.
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Pinnacle Student Developments Ltd (PSDL) later collapsed with large liabilities. The Elliot Group acquired the site in 2019. Owner Elliot Lawless told ECHO that the units had been removed to ensure the building complied with fire and construction regulations.
Last week, a real estate consultant representing investors in the plan provided photographs showing units of the building stripped of their furniture and accessories.
The consultant said about 160 units in the building had been stripped of their furniture. The consultant who provided the photographs said investors were now worried and confused.
He said: “The existing 160 tenants are still without livable units and this is expected to be rectified for all soon.”
A spokesman for The Elliot Group said the company bought the apartment block from administrators in November 2019. A spokesman said the block was half-built when the previous scheme collapsed in the administration. .
The spokesman said Mr Lawless had spent millions of pounds on completing the plan and the plan had been approved by council building inspectors.
Lawless said, “When I bought the building, I knew it would be a big challenge. There were large gaps in the roof that caused water damage to much of the building and saw the basement completely flooded. Many of the finished apartments were ruined.
“There was no spray system, the cladding had been condemned due to the Grenfell disaster and most of the building was incomplete.
Photographs showing “naked rooms” in Liverpool’s Paramount Building (Image: brochure)
“Our first job was to understand what it took to meet the new building control standards, and among the advice we received from our fire safety consultants was to remove the existing apartments as their accessories and fittings posed a fire hazard, as well as the absence of a spray system.We required access to all apartments to deal with these risks.
“We stored them where there were recoverable accessories, but much of it was ruined by flood water or deemed unsafe. Existing investors will, of course, have to refurbish their apartments with compliant furniture and redecorate. -the bear.
“All the renovations have been done at our expense because we had to act quickly for the benefit of all. I loved helping and investors now have a marketable asset instead of one that is doomed. “
“It has been one of our most challenging projects, but seeing how the building fulfills its potential is very satisfying. Its development brings the number of units we have successfully delivered to Liverpool to over two and a half thousand in twenty-three different projects. “
PSDL is about to be dissolved by a liquidator Quantuma Advisory Ltd. Its latest report has revealed that PSDL owes tens of millions of pounds to creditors.
The report reveals that the company owes £ 25,066,757.55 to HMRC and £ 13,505,055.74 to Pinnacle Student Buyers, a company that represents real estate investors.
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