The people of Sunderland are set to benefit from a new city centre housing development which is being brought forward with a £4.8 million investment from Homes England's Brownfield Infrastructure Land (BIL) fund.
Work is well underway at the West Park site where Vistry North East is delivering a mixed tenure community of 265 new homes, including properties available for open market sale, private rent, and affordable rent.
The development is facilitating the repopulation of the city centre and increasing choice and accessibility to high quality new homes, a key objective of the Sunderland City Plan which aims to create a connected international city with a low carbon economy by 2035.
Homes England's intervention has supported the carefully managed demolition of the former Civic Centre building and the re-use of a high proportion of the material within the proposed development. The demolition work was completed by MGL Group and overseen by Vistry and was carefully coordinated to maintain the ongoing operation of the adjacent railway line.
The BIL funding has been critical in securing the timely completion of the demolition work, unlocking the delivery of the new homes, and satisfying the project's ambitious sustainability goals.
Marie Kiddell, Assistant Director, Markets, Partners and Places at Homes England, said:
This is an important milestone in the transformation of Sunderland city centre. This funding will provide a much needed capital injection to enable the delivery of this ambitious and highly anticipated development that will increase housing choice and enhance lifestyle opportunities for residents and businesses in the city".
Through its strong local leadership, backed by private sector investment and central government grant funding, Sunderland City Council is transforming its city centre. Development is well underway at Riverside, Sunderland, where 1,000 new homes will be occupied by 2,500 new residents and 1 million sq ft of employment space will create 10,000 new jobs. The regeneration of the Sunniside neighbourhood is also gathering pace with the launch of the Sunniside Place Strategy, the reopening of the cinema, and the submission of a planning application for the new Nile + Villiers residential community.
Homes England continues to work closely with the council to unlock the delivery of future phases of regeneration.
Peter McIntyre, Executive Director of City development at Sunderland City Council, said:
Establishing a new community comprising high quality homes on the edge of the city centre, has been a central pillar of our City Plan, so we're delighted to see work progressing apace on the development of West Park.
By having more people living in the heart of Sunderland, we are able to create footfall to support our city centre businesses, as well as providing the high-quality homes required to attract workers who will be employed in and around the city centre. It's a key part of our strategy for a successful city.
Andrew Rennie, Development Director with Vistry North East, said:
We are delighted to be part of this complex regeneration project, which will be a flagship for us, on both a local and national level. It will revitalise this part of the city centre, creating a vibrant community of high quality new homes in this sustainable city centre location. The properties will be set around public, open green spaces and will offer excellent links to the High Street and to local transport infrastructure.
