Everton’s plans for a new stadium in Walton Hall Park have been officially scrapped.
Liverpool City Council released a statement this morning confirming that two other sites within the city boundaries are now under consideration following a lengthy investigation.
Mayor of Liverpool, Joe Anderson said: “Most people will be aware that I did give a commitment to Everton to support a potential scheme at Walton Hall Park with the aim of regenerating the area and creating new jobs.
“However, through the work that the club and the council have done, we have concluded that effectively building a new village in North Liverpool with lots of retail space is a step too far in this current economic climate.
“On the subject of the park itself, I can now say that the park will remain a park and will be designated as such in our Local Plan which will be out for consultation this summer.”
The decision to uproot to Walton Hall Park, a short distance from the Blues’ current home of Goodison Park, was announced in 2014 but progress proved increasingly limited.
Local residents vehemently opposed the building of the stadium while matters came further to a head last year when Everton chief executive Robert Elstone publicly accused Liverpool City Council of having ‘no true partnership’ with the club over the matter.
That prompted Mayor of Liverpool Anderson to challenge the Toffees to provide evidence of their plan for both the stadium’s building and funding.
Previously Everton have failed to build stadiums at the Kings Dock area of the city and as part of a planned retail development in Kirkby.