Sunderland news
GREEN PRAISE FOR
NORTHERN SPIRE HOUSES
Retail boost for Sunderland
as Next expands store
Plans to build more than 1,000 new
homes next to the Northern Spire
bridge in the centre of Sunderland
have won praise from the Campaign to
Protect Rural England.
The countryside charity opposes the
unneeded development of Green Belt land
and greenfield sites by developers intent on
making the biggest possible profits.
And Richard Cowen, chair of CPRE North
East, says the sort of urban regeneration
being planned around the Northern Spire
is exactly the sort of forward-thinking
development the country needs.
He said: “We welcome this development
because it will be good for the city and the
community of Sunderland but also the
surrounding countryside which all too often
is the first choice of developers when it
should be the last.
“These houses will have a riverside setting
next to a hugely iconic bridge and will bring
new life back to this part of the city but they
will also reduce pressure on the countryside
because they will absorb so much of the
need for further housing development in the
borough.”
More than 1,000 new affordable and highquality
homes are to be built on brownfield
land on the south side of the Wear crossing,
creating a new community called Northern
Spire Park.
Sunderland City Council revealed its
plans for the area, which it has taken into its
control after the former landowner’s vision
for housing on the site stalled.
Preparatory works on the site are expected
to take 12-18 months before the houses
begin to be built.
Retail in Wearside received a shot in the
arm with leading store Next opening its
new, expanded store.
In a boost for the Sunderland high
street, the company took over the vacant
unit beside its existing store at the
Bridges, increasing the store size from
10,221 sq ft to 14,710 sq ft.
The new unit houses a much larger
children’s wear section on the ground
floor and an extended homewares
section.
The leading retailer confirmed earlier
this year its plan for a larger presence in
Sunderland, providing a major boost to
the city centre.
CAPITAL FUNDS
NEW HOMES
Businesses STACK
up in Seaburn
PORT TRADE ON THE RISE
Commercial units in Sunderland’s eagerlyanticipated
new STACK venue are on course
for full occupancy after an influx of tenants
signed on the dotted line to take space.
STACK developer Danieli Holdings
revealed that just three of the 22 units at the
seaside venue remained vacant as of mid-
August, after a large number of businesses
– many of them Sunderland-based –
committed to take space ahead of the late
August opening.
STACK will be a community space where
people come together through music, sport,
events and regular pop-ups, while making
the most of the seafront destination with a
range of indoor and outdoor activities.
The Port of Sunderland has reported an 85
per cent rise in exports during the second
quarter of the year, as it helped keep goods
flowing in and out of the UK throughout the
pandemic.
The port played a key role in sustaining
several of the country’s key sectors and
supply chains during the period, welcoming
ships carrying everything from agricultural
fertiliser to steel, wood pulp and other raw
materials.
From April to June, the port handled
71,748 tonnes of cargo set for export –
compared to just 38,661 tonnes for the same
period last year – with vessel destinations
around the North and Baltic Seas.
A development of five family homes
at a former school kitchen is nearing
completion thanks to a £700,000
investment from a new funding
scheme.
The building work, on disused
land near Sunderland, marks the first
investment the North East Property
Fund has made in South Tyneside.
North Road (Boldon)
Developments received the £700,000
loan to complete the construction
of the five family homes in Boldon
Colliery.
The North East Property Fund
was established with the aim of
supporting the development of smallscale
property schemes and is backed
by Santander and the North East
Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP).
More info about the funding is
available at fwcapital.co.uk
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