Breck Road

In Common presents spatial propositions by MGMA Architects in response to the conditions of Breck Road, north Liverpool, a setting nominated by Liverpool City Council as part of the 2021 Liverpool Architecture Festival Design Charette.

Breck Road comprises a dense high street of predominantly three-storey C19 properties of the “living over the shop” typology, punctuated with corner public houses, religious and monument buildings, and an amount of C20 infill, including large shed supermarkets, their car parks and service areas.

MGMA’s proposals seek to retain the urban structure of the setting, limiting demolition to those areas where the feasibility of conversion is outweighed by the need for a dramatic change, such as the delivery of the new civic core at Breck Square. The generic shed is adopted as a canvas for new inhabitation, providing much needed external amenity for the dense residential properties in the district.

In common provides both conceptual and concrete proposals for change in this neglected district centre in the north of Liverpool. A toolkit rather than a masterplan, the project employs variety as a methodology for avoiding homogeneity. The scale of proposals is at once civic and intimate; MGMA offer proposals for large sites, for individual properties, and for the street condition. Dwelling spaces are created, along with dedicated zones for activity and recreation – each and all designed to encourage residents to gather, to rediscover a civic identity in their district.

This is a project of connections; re-establishing formal and material character links along the rejuvenated high street. Core principles for MGMA’s proposals include acknowledging patterns of change, encouraging density and delivering a renewed civic core, and offering small scale interventions to complement existing established communities.