Landmark car park planned for Sunderland Riverside scheme

A planning application for the development of an eye-catching 650-space multi-storey car park in Sunderland city centre has been submitted.

The multi-storey facility – which will be illuminated with colourful lights and a living wall – will be located on Farringdon Row and will be the latest addition to Riverside Sunderland, a new urban quarter overlooking the River Wear.

It follows the approval of plans for two new offices – providing some 18,500m² of commercial space – by institutional investor Legal & General. The application is likely to go before Sunderland’s planning committee in April and, if approved, work is expected to start in the summer months.

The multi-storey car park (MSCP), which will stand in a prominent position on the edge of the Riverside Sunderland development, will cater for the increased number of people who will live, work and play in the city, as regeneration advances at pace.

Councillor Graeme Miller, Leader of Sunderland City Council, said: “Sunderland’s skyline has been transformed over the past 12 months with the opening of The Beam and work continuing apace on City Hall and – as work on two new office buildings and the Holiday Inn moves forward – it’s becoming clear for all to see just how much of a transformational impact this development is having on the city.

“Once complete, it is estimated that the wider Riverside Sunderland development will create up to 10,000 jobs and significantly boost the city centre population with the construction of thousands of homes, providing a huge boost to footfall in the city centre by increasing the number of people visiting, living and working there.

“Making it easy for people to access the city centre is paramount to this, and the development of the MSCP will be a central pillar in the wider transport and infrastructure strategy to really bring this area to life.”