Construction under way at brewery site
BUILDING BEGINS TO REVIVE VAUX GROUNDS 18 YEARS ON
Sunderland Reporter A MASSIVE regeneration project is finally under way on the Vaux brewery site 18 years after its closure.
A new 60,000 sq ft office building will be the first to go up on the 800 sq ft site, with more to follow.
The state-of-the-art development will cost £20 million should be completed by June 2018 and kick-starts what is being lined up as a 20-year project.
Construction work has commenced, giving the city a chance to see a key area from its past receive a major overhaul.
When finished, the five-storey building could also house a bar, cafe and restaurant on the ground floor.
Steel structures can be seen from the road, the early stages of the first building to be put up on the site since the 1999 brewery closure left a huge hole in Sunderland.
Regeneration work is being delivered by Siglion, a joint venture set up between Carillion and Sunderland City Council.
Its chief executive, John Seager, said: “The Vaux site is such a focal point for Sunderland and its position as one of the main entrance points of the city centre is hugely important for those visiting.
“It’s fantastic to see the building begin to take shape and see this important location transformed into a development that reflects the modern and dynamic city that Sunderland is.
“The Vaux development, when it is completed, will be a space that will create new jobs, workplaces and original communities.
“It’s a huge step forward and we hope that the second phase will follow soon after the first building.”
A stone’s throw over the river from the Stadium of Light and settled close to the city’s historic heart, the site should be prime real estate.
But the vacant patch of land has become a long-running source of frustration for Sunderland residents because of the lack of development.
Tesco bought the land in 2001, two years after it became available, but failed to build a supermarket.
The plot was then bought by Sunderland City Council in 2011 and efforts have been made to transform and modernise the surrounding environment.
Irene Lucas CBE, chief executive of Sunderland City Council, said: “Sunderland has taken huge leaps forward in attracting innovative, high-growth businesses to the city, as well as supporting start-ups to succeed – particularly in the knowledge economy, an area in which Sunderland has achieved the second-fastest rate outside of London.
“Office spaces, like the new facility in Vaux, will provide high quality accommodation to scores of businesses that want to be part of what will be an innovative and creative community at the heart of the city centre.
“It’s hugely exciting to see the site taking shape and we look forward to June of next year, when this stunning new centre will be set to open its doors.”
Business accommodation is already available to let, with spaces ranging from 1,000 sq ft to the entire building.
The building was designed by architecture firm Field Clegg Bradley Studios. of growth