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ONLINE retail giant Amazon is the firm behind a major new warehouse in Liverpool creating up to 1,000 jobs, the ECHO can reveal.

Liverpool council has earmarked the huge development site at Stonebridge Cross, off the East Lancs Road in Croxteth, once home to the Gillmoss estate.

Yesterday, Stoford Developments – the firm behind the plans to build the 1m sq ft warehouse – unveiled the scheme to residents.

But the plan sparked anger among the Croxteth community as the site had been set aside for 500 new homes, a new home for St John Bosco secondary school and a supermarket.

Plans to replace the estate with a community called Stonebridge Cross were first unveiled by the council in 2002. The last few residents were rehoused and the remaining four streets demolished in 2008.

There have been four previous sets of plans for the 68-acre council-owned site and each time the plans included new homes.

Elizabeth Heard, who has lived in the area for 58 years, said: “We don’t want to be looking out over a huge warehouse. When the people who lived there had to move out, they were promised they could come back when the new houses were built.

“How can they come back when a warehouse is built?”

Another resident said: “We don’t want Amazon moving to the area, they are not socially responsible, they don’t pay tax in this country. We want a public meeting with the mayor Joe Anderson because we know he’s behind the plans.”

Liverpool council insists a major job creator coming to the area is too good to turn away. It also promised that the new homes, supermarket and a new St John Bosco school would still go ahead but on other unnamed sites.

Jon Andrews, of Stoford, said the warehouse would employ 500 people full time, rising to 1,000 at peak times of the year.

The plans also include 1,000 car parking spaces and 160 HGVs would enter and leave each day.

The firm expects to submit its planning application at the end of the month and hopes open next year.

The ECHO understands residents were 60-40 in favour of the plans yesterday.

Local councillor Peter Mitchell said he understood the frustrations of some people: “This development has the potential to create 1,000 jobs and the council had to look at this offer. We will still deliver all the other things that were planned.

“This is a potentially huge opportunity. We are all committed to bringing jobs to north Liverpool, we need to keep our eye on the prize.”

He said he would be insisting a legal agreement was reached with the developers guaranteeing at least 50% of the jobs would go to residents in the L11 area.

Amazon had previously been looking at a site in Halebank, on the banks of the Mersey near Widnes.

But last month a High Court judge ruled against Halton council’s decision to give planning permission.

Mayor Anderson said: “This is really good news for a part of Liverpool that desperately needs jobs in order to be able to give the local community hope for the future and will transform the lives of many people.”

There will be a second consultation event today at the Communiversity, in Altcross Road, from noon to 4pm.