Topping out – the traditional ceremony was held at the Maker and Faber offices .
as construction of these brilliant buildings gathers pace .
“ Seeing the shell of Maker and Faber in position – the realisation of many , many months of planning and hard work – is a proud moment for us at Landid and in just over a year , we ’ ll be ready to welcome businesses that will play a key part in regenerating Sunderland city centre .”
Sir Andrew McAlpine said : “ These are two hugely impressive buildings and seeing them pierce the skyline in Sunderland is a proud day for us .
“ We ’ re delighted to be playing a part in transforming the city centre with a development that will create jobs and opportunities for local people and businesses . During the construction , we are keen to generate social value for the community , recruiting local workforce and supply chain partners and supporting training opportunities in the region .”
Dignitaries – Legal & General , Landid , Sir Robert McAlpine and Sunderland Council were all represented at the topping out ceremony .
Maker and Faber are a key part of Riverside Sunderland , named Best Future Place at the prestigious Pineapple Awards , which will create a vibrant , mixeduse site , comprising 1,000 new homes for up to 2,500 new residents , as well as a range of new places to enjoy – including parkland both sides of the river , and ‘ the UK ’ s best library ’, Culture House – and 1m sq ft of office space .
It will boost the number of people living and working in the heart of the city , creating a stronger daytime and evening economy by doubling the resident population of the city centre from 2,500 to 5,000 and increasing employment by 50 % to 18,000 .
Patrick Melia , chief executive of
Sunderland City Council , said : “ Topping out is a key moment in the development of any new building , but the sense of tradition and occasion today made this extra special .
“ These are game-changing developments for Sunderland and , as these two buildings top out , we move that step closer to realising the impact they will have , not only through the physical change they bring , but through the confidence they will give to our city centre traders who will reap the benefit of thousands more people on the doorstep by day and evening .”
Both buildings are being actively marketed by commercial property agents Knight Frank and JLL .
To stay up to date with Maker and Faber ’ s development , visit makerfaber . co . uk or follow @ makerandfaber on social media . To enquire about space within the buildings , contact Richard Thorton from JLL at Richard . Thornton @ eu . jll . com or on 0113 235 5269 or contact Patrick Matheson of Knight Frank at Patrick . matheson @ knightfrank . com or on 0191 594 5001 .
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