Editing Port of Liverpool Building (section)

==History==
In 1898 the [[Mersey Docks and Harbour Board]] (MDHB) decided to close down and infill [[George's Dock]], which was located on the site of what is the [[Pier Head]] today.<ref>{{cite web |title=Mersey Docks & Harbour Board Building |publisher=[[E Chambre Hardman|E Chambre Hardman Archives]] |url=http://www.mersey-gateway.org/server.php?show=ConNarrative.187&chapterId=1487 |access-date=5 July 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120222054908/http://www.mersey-gateway.org/server.php?show=ConNarrative.187&chapterId=1487 |archive-date=22 February 2012 }}</ref> The land was sold to the [[Liverpool Corporation]] in 1900, although the MDHB opted to keep the southern section so that they could build a new central headquarters for the company, having been previously located at various sites around the city, including the Old Customs House.<ref name="Maritime Archives & Library: The Port of Liverpool Building">{{cite web|url=http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/archive/displayGuide.aspx?sid=40&mode=html&sorStr=s_no%20ASC%200&serStr=&pgeInt=4&catStr=|title=Maritime Archives & Library: The Port of Liverpool Building|work=National Museums Liverpool|access-date=1 February 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110608062802/http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/maritime/archive/displayGuide.aspx?sid=40&mode=html&sorStr=s_no%20ASC%200&serStr=&pgeInt=4&catStr=|archive-date=8 June 2011}}</ref>

[[Image:Port of Liverpool Building.jpg|thumb|left|A view from the [[River Mersey|Mersey]] from before 1914, showing a gap on the left, where the [[Cunard Building]] is now located]]
[[File:Port of Liverpool Building 10.jpg|thumb|left|The Port of Liverpool Building]]
In 1900 a committee was formed by the MDHB to plan and develop a new building for the company.<ref name="Sharples (2004), p67">Sharples (2004), p67</ref> Under the leadership of Robert Gladstone, a competition was launched for local architects to submit designs for the new building. [[Alfred Waterhouse]], a renowned local architect, was brought in to help judge the competition and prizes of £300, £200 and £100 were offered for the three best designs.<ref name="Maritime Archives & Library: The Port of Liverpool Building"/> In total, seven entries were submitted, with the winning design being that of the architects Sir Arnold Thornely and F.B. Hobbs, which had been developed in collaboration with Briggs and Wolstenholme. Due to boundary changes of the land on which the building was to be built, amendments were made to the design, most notably with the central dome, which was only added at the last minute.<ref name="Sharples (2004), p67"/>

In 1903, with the design now confirmed, the MDHB requested that a number of builders submit a tender document for the construction of the building to the revised design. Over 30 builders were contacted, with William Brown & Son of [[Manchester]] winning the contract to construct the new building.<ref name="Maritime Archives & Library: The Port of Liverpool Building"/> Work began in 1904, with the first nine months of construction focusing on laying the building's foundations, which were dug to a depth of {{convert|30|–|40|ft|m|1}} below ground level.<ref name="Maritime Archives & Library: The Port of Liverpool Building"/> The building's frame was built from [[reinforced concrete]], which was then clad in [[Portland stone]],<ref name="Sharples (2004), p67"/> a design that meant the building was more fire resistant than with other structural forms.<ref name="Maritime Archives & Library: The Port of Liverpool Building"/> It was completed in 1907 at a cost of approximately £250,000,<ref name="Nicholls (2005), p11"/> although when the cost of furniture, fittings and professional fees was taken into account, the total cost was nearer £350,000. Staff from the MDHB headquarters officially moved into the building on 15 July 1907, with staff from departments located in other areas of the city moving in throughout the rest of the year.<ref name="Maritime Archives & Library: The Port of Liverpool Building"/>

During [[World War II]], Liverpool's importance as a major port saw it become a target for the [[Luftwaffe]] and during the [[Liverpool Blitz|May Blitz]] of 1941, a [[Strategic bombing during World War II|heavy bomb]] exploded in the basement, on the eastern side of the building. The damage from the explosion was significant with the eastern wing being seriously damaged by fire. Nonetheless, the building's structural integrity meant that much of the building could be re-occupied with only temporary repairs. In the aftermath of the war the building was fully restored; the cost of restoration exceeding the original construction costs.<ref name="Maritime Archives & Library: The Port of Liverpool Building" />

The building acted as the head offices of the MDHB (renamed the Mersey Docks and Harbour Company in 1972) for some 87 years. In 1994 the company moved to new headquarters at the Maritime Centre near [[Seaforth Dock]] in the north of the city, in order to be closer to what was now the centre of Liverpool's docking system.<ref name="Maritime Archives & Library: The Port of Liverpool Building" /> However, the company remained the owners of the building until 2001 when it was acquired by Downing, a Liverpool-based property developer.<ref name="Echo">{{cite web |last1=McDonough |first1=Tony |title=Port of Liverpool Building is sold in a deal worth more than £27m |url=https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/business/port-liverpool-building-sold-deal-10501800 |website=Echo |date=25 November 2015 |access-date=31 July 2018}}</ref>

Plans submitted in 2005 for the restoration of the building were approved by [[Liverpool City Council]]. The scheme involved major internal and external work that would fully restore the Grade II* listed building. The plans included opening the building to the public, by creating a new viewing floor inside the dome and a publicly accessible sunken piazza on the riverside frontage that would provide a small parade of restaurants, cafes and shops.<ref>{{cite news |last=Neild |first=Larry |title=Port of Liverpool building gets £20m facelift inside and out |newspaper=Liverpool Echo |date=17 October 2005 |url=http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-news/capital-of-culture/capital-of-culture-liverpool-news/2005/10/17/port-of-liverpool-building-gets-20m-facelift-inside-and-out-100252-16258233/ |access-date=10 July 2009}}</ref> A sixth level of the building, which had been "dismantled" in the aftermath of the Second World War, was also to be restored, providing a series of luxury apartments.<ref>{{cite news |last=Nield |first=Larry |title=Plan for luxury flats in one of the Graces |newspaper=[[Liverpool Echo]] |date=6 October 2005 |url=http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-news/capital-of-culture/capital-of-culture-liverpool-news/2005/10/06/plan-for-luxury-flats-in-one-of-the-graces-100252-16214668/ |access-date=10 July 2009}}</ref> The first stage of the renovation was completed in early 2008, when the restoration of the Portland stone on the river facing side of the building was completed.<ref>{{cite news |last=Jones |first=Catherine |title=Covers set to come off the face of Grace |newspaper=[[Liverpool Echo]] |date=9 January 2008 |url=http://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/liverpool-news/local-news/2008/01/09/covers-set-to-come-off-the-face-of-grace-100252-20327600/ |access-date=10 July 2009}}</ref> The £10m restoration project was fully completed in early 2009, when the last [[scaffolding]] was removed from the outside of the building and {{convert|20000|sqft|m2|abbr=on|sigfig=1}} of refurbished office space was completed.<ref>{{cite news |last=Turnbull |first=Barry |title=Blitz survivor restored to glory |newspaper=[[Liverpool Daily Post]] |date=26 May 2009 |url=http://www.liverpooldailypost.co.uk/ldpbusiness/commercial-property-liverpool/2009/05/26/blitz-survivor-restored-to-glory-96026-23702223/ |access-date=10 July 2009}}</ref>