Is the UK's biggest urban revival going to transform Merseyside's docklands and place it firmly on the map as Britain second most important region - or will it all end in tears?

Peel holdings, owners of Mersey Docks & Harbour Company and Liverpool John Lennon Airport have finally unveiled detailed plans for what is arguably the largest regeneration project in the country, transforming 500 acres of brownfield, underused land, writes Sue Kelly .

The £4.5 billion waterside redevelopment scheme will see the transformation of Birkenhead Docks with Wirral becoming an international waterside destination with a skyline that will turn it into the North West's very own New York, or perhaps a Sydney or a Shanghai. If all goes to plan, the economic benefits will be far-reaching.

According to Peel: "The 18 million square feet regeneration scheme named Wirral Waters will see the creation of a world class mixed use iconic waterfront development providing major benefits for the local economy and for the people of Wirral and beyond with a massive increase in tourist business, tens of thousands of new jobs and inward investment to the area."

But is this the emergence of a new era for a region as it attempts to create a rival to the South of England with booming property prices to follow - or are the developers simply building castles in the air and creating a glut of under-used office space.