Following the submission of its mixed-use planning application earlier this month, property developer Town End Farm Partnership (“TEFP”), hosted a public exhibition at the Washington Business Centre on Thursday 20 October, to share with the local community, businesses and stakeholders its Masterplan vision for Wear Point 55.
The exhibition set out in more detail the proposed development plans for Wear Point 55. Presentation boards were on display charting the history of the proposals from early inception and identification of key issues to the first draft Masterplan for discussion purposes during the formal submission. The boards also included a Masterplan outline indicating the location of the detailed planning application and outline scheme showing the constituent parts and floor plates set in the context of Nissan and the surrounding residential estate.
A number of local residents and stakeholders attended the exhibition and the feedback has been very positive on the proposed development with agreement that it will be good for the region and for local employment opportunities.
Wear Point 55 is a 22-hectare site, which could deliver over 92,000 sq m (1 million sq ft) of manufacturing space and almost 9,300 sq m (100,000 sq ft) of commercial space including new Tier 1 supplier factories and a substantial commercial hub.
The proposed development could provide around 1,348 local jobs, more than a third of which would be in Sunderland and include significant inward investment of £70m to the local and regional economies.
Commenting on the exhibition, TEFP director Peter Razaq, said:
“While we are still processing the results of the consultation exercise, we are pleased with the overall positive responses received from attendees and online respondents. We believe that there is now much greater understanding about what we are hoping to achieve at Wear Point 55 and the benefits this development will bring to the North East both economically and through local employment opportunities. Already we have received a number of exciting enquiries which are progressing.
“We continue to welcome further feedback on our proposals and look forward to working with Sunderland City Council to deliver an exemplary scheme.”
