Quayside regeneration plans on show

Oct 4 2007 By Paul James, The Journal

ONE of the most high-profile planning applications that Tyneside has seen in years went on show to the public yesterday.

The brief for the final piece of land on the Gateshead Quayside, between the Baltic and the Sage, includes new homes, offices and shops, alongside hotels, pubs and restaurants, and new leisure and tourist attractions.

The pubic consultation, which will last until November 14, includes two parts of the scheme, on Hawks Road and South Shore, which council bosses hope will create a “vibrant waterside community”. Described as the most valuable piece of real estate in the North-East, the land is seen as pivotal to the future of the Quayside.

Development of the £100m, 5.5-acre site, known as GQ2, could create up to 1,700 jobs.

Kier was appointed in October last year as the preferred developer of the land, and after talks with the council and with the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment, it was decided that a new planning brief would be prepared to ensure both of the sites are developed in a complimentary manner. After securing the contract for the site, Kier director Kevin Dixon said the firm had already had offers from four-star hotel chains and had also been in talks with a number of cinema operators – describing the approaches as “an embarrassment of riches”.

And yesterday deputy Leader of Gateshead Council, Coun Ian Mearns said: “This site is a vital piece in the jigsaw of Gateshead Quays regeneration.

“It is a prime site and I’m sure once work is completed it will transform the area. We look forward to hearing peoples views on the brief and hope that they will be as excited as we are.”

Comments on the draft planning brief are invited from the public at www.gateshead.gov.uk under the planning section or by calling (0191) 433-3214.

There is also the opportunity to view and comment on the brief by visiting the music library in The Sage Gateshead.

After the comments are collected and considered, a final version of the planning brief will be adopted as Interim Policy Advice (IPA) by the council.