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Levy backs Liverpool's 'unique ensemble'
Insider Media | 16th November 2011

As the UNESCO delegation assessing Liverpool’s continued right to claim World Heritage Site status study the city, a ringing endorsement has come from a US urban strategist visiting Liverpool this week.

Paul Levy, chief executive of the Philadelphia Business Improvement District, said at this week's 'It's Liverpool' business conference that the city’s strongest suit with inward investors is its physical uniqueness.

Levy said: "I’m impressed by Liverpool and the way you’ve woven together a unique urban ensemble from fabulous old buildings and new developments. Preserving the past while looking to the future is the essence of successful cities."

The conference was organised by Downtown Liverpool in Business and also included presentations from entrepreneurs headed by Steve Morgan and civic leaders including Joe Anderson and Ged Fitzgerald, leader and chief executive respectively at Liverpool City Council.

Levy’s session was headlined ‘An American Perspective’ and looked at how Philadelphia has progressed since forming its BID in 1991 – entirely private sector-directed, it is now an £18.7m organisation and has a large part to play in policing, street cleaning and physical improvements.

He spoke of how derelict central buildings, if developed into occupied space, were exempt from property tax for ten years, suggesting this may be a market stimulus worth exploring.