Public Realm
Following the successful completion of Sunniside Gardens, £2.2million funding has been awarded by One North East to deliver the next phase of public realm improvements. A programme of works will improve four key streets in the historic core making them safer, more pedestrian friendly and enhance connections between Sunniside, the city centre and the East End. The streets will be brought to life by public art and lighting installations provided by internationally renowned artists. The work has now started and will be completed by summer 2010.
The streets earmarked for improvement are:
- St Thomas Street
- High Street West (between Fawcett Street and Norfolk Street)
- West Sunniside and Norfolk Street (between High Street West and Sunniside Gardens)
- Coronation Street
East Sunniside
The delivery of the regeneration of East Sunniside is being addressed through a masterplan for the area that has been incorporated into the adopted Sunniside Planning and Design Framework. This will provide the framework to guide future investment and development in the area.
The masterplan proposes the following uses:
- Approximately 600 homes, mainly family sized
- Up to 30,000 sq. metres of high quality, small and medium sized office accommodation
- 3,000 sq. metres of light industrial floorspace, primarily for creative industries
- 2,000 sq. metres of retail units
- 2,000 sq. metres leisure use
This level of development is expected to take place over 15 years and will attract in the region of £200million of private sector investment, creating around 1,600 jobs.
We are actively working with developers and Registered Social Landlords to develop our vision for East Sunniside. If you would like to be a part of this please click here to visit the Developers section of this website.
SunnisideARTS
Cultural activity is seen as integral to the physical regeneration of Sunniside. It can provide a catalyst for physical and environmental revival, attracting spending and investment, generating new economic activity and jobs that can change and enhance the area’s image.
Involving artists at the heart of Sunniside’s regeneration has led to increasing creative activity in the area. Assistance has been given to support and embed artists groups through a series of residencies together with a number of events in the area, including the nationally reported ‘Fold Up’ project held in Sunniside Gardens during summer 2008. Together with the installation of a striking sculpture in Sunniside Gardens and the commission for the artwork louvres at thePlace, these projects have generated widespread interest in the area which will continue with the incorporation of arts installations and lighting as part of the planned public realm improvements.
Sunniside’s urban environment provides an excellent location as well as a large number of properties, either vacant or about to be developed, which are able to provide temporary studio accommodation, exhibitions or installations.
Click here for more information on art projects in Sunniside.
Commercial Property Grant Scheme
Set up in 2005 the Sunniside Commercial Property Grant Scheme is now in its final year. The grant scheme has provided financial incentives for owners, landlords and tenants to improve their property to make businesses more viable and to bring empty buildings back into use.
So far grants totalling over £1million have been approved for 26 projects, creating more than 70 jobs, with further projects due to be completed before the end of March 2010.
Safeguard Grant Scheme
The Safeguard Grant Scheme was established to provide financial assistance primarily for the private sector for security and external improvements to properties within the Hendon area, which includes Sunniside. The grant scheme has provided encouragement to owners to improve the external appearance of their properties to a higher standard, as well as providing improved security features. The project was established in July 2006 and ended on 31 March 2009. Funding of £234,000 was awarded resulting in 52 projects completed.
thePlace
Completed in May 2008, thePlace provides a sustainable business community at the heart of Sunniside to complement other facilities in the city and acts as a hub for creative activity in the area.
This £6.5million project incorporates six Grade II listed Georgian terrace properties linked to a stunning new build extension incorporating business spaces and artists’ studios, meeting rooms, performance space, a gallery and a café.
This direct provision of 1,219 sq. metres of flexible, high quality commercial space is assisting start up businesses and increasing opportunities for existing businesses to locate within Sunniside, contributing to the growth of the local economy.
thePlace won the regional Journal Landmark Office Development Award in 2008, received a Commendation in the national 2009 Civic Trust Awards and is a regional RIBA award winner. The project has been nominated for the regional RICS awards in 2009.
Sunniside Gardens
As the only significant area of open space in Sunniside the recent £2 million refurbishment of Sunniside Gardens epitomises the transformation of the historic core and provides the benchmark for the quality of further investment into public realm in the area and a focus for cultural and community activity.
Completed in March 2007, Sunniside Gardens has become the heart of the area, attracting new leisure based businesses, including a range of restaurants, bars and cafes, and providing a space for people to enjoy. The installation in January 2008 of local artist Laura Johnson’s striking steel and glass sculpture has completed the scheme. The success of the project has been recognised nationally and has received the following accolades:
- Winner of the 2007 RICS North East Renaissance Award Regeneration Project of the Year.
- Highly Commended at the Landscape Institute
- Commendation from the North East branch of the Royal Town Planning Institute.
- Commendation from the Civic Engineering Contractors Association North East Awards
Funded by English Partnerships (now the Homes and Communities Agency) Sunniside Gardens were designed by Robinson Landscape Design and built by Seymour Engineering.