Sunderland Regeneration
The iconic publicly funded schemes are the well-publicised examples of Sunderland's regeneration.
The public sector, however, can only lead the way by installing confidence an infrastructure in the form of developments such as the Vaux site, Riverside Park, Holmeside, Sunniside, Stadium developments and new bridges over the Wear. In isolation, none of these projects can be said to constitute regeneration but crucially they act together as catalysts to the private sector developments that follow on.
Regeneration in Sunderland is entirely dependant on the private sector rising to the challenge laid down by the public sector.
Perhaps one of the best examples of the private sector stepping up to the mark is the Quay West business park being developed by Adderstone Group. The park located on the former Austin and Pickersgill shipyard on the West Quay banks of the Wear, alongside the Queen Alexandra Bridge. The 100,000 sq ft business park comprises of 48 separate office buildings, all aimed at small to medium businesses. With a cafe, shop and riverside walkway, this development is set to transform almost five acres of derelict and contaminated land on the river's north shore.
Ian Baggett, Newcastle-based Adderstone Group's managing director, said; "Initially we were disappointed to learn that we did not qualify for any public funding, given that our park will have the potential to accommodate up to 2,000 employees and is being built on a contaminated old shipyard but in many ways the public sector have done their bit.
We have been amazed at the early interest from business owners and investors alike. It is like there is a buzz of excitement and no matter what seems to be going on in the wider economy; everyone seems to acknowledge Sunderland's growth potential. We are smack bang in the middle of the main catalyst projects and have clearly benefited, albeit indirectly, from the £2m public sector investment that has been pledged."
A number of other local private companies are also stepping up to the mark alongside Adderstone and playing their role in this landmark regeneration project.
Sunderland-based surveyors and commercial agents, Lofthouse and Partners, have been appointed as sole agents on the scheme.
Mario Jaconelli said; "We are delighted to be involved in Sunderland's first true own-front-door office park. This is our market place and we have been working closely with Adderstone on the designs for Quay West.
"We have absolute confidence in the demand that exists locally for precisely this type of project. Sunderland has more that its fair share of exciting young businesses, many of whom are looking to either move out of older properties in the city or progress up from incubator type units such as those in the Business Innovation Centre."
Sunderland-based quantity surveyors Elliot Dent became the first occupier when they recently agreed to buy an office at Quay West. Director Mark Doherty said; "We were appointed by Adderstone as quantity surveyors for the scheme and were so impressed with the offices that we decided to buy one."
Finally, the recently reformed Brims Construction Limited who are also considering moving on to the park have been awarded the main contact. Remarkably, the original North-East construction giant, Brims & CO, were responsible for carrying out some of the original construction work to the existing quay wall on the site.
Having bought and relaunched the Brims name, Ian Clift, Jason Wood and Richard Wood, have been busy building up the business carrying out a wide range of work across the region.
They have also been awarded work on a £3m comemrcial scheme for Hellens Developments on the outskirts of the city at Washingont and also a £3.5m residential development for Atlas Homes which is part of Sunderland City Council's Sunniside regeneration.
Director Ian Clift said; "Our fathers worked for Brims and the illustrious name carries with it a great deal of history. We are working hard to live up to it and are confident that we now have the staff in place to take on this scale of contract.
Our board had collective experience on much larger projects, but, in the last year we have worked hard at recruiting the right managers and putting the correct infrastructure in place to handle projects such as Quay West."
Fellow director Jason Wood said; "We are delighted to have won the contract to build this business park. As a local company we are obviously keen to play a part in the regeneration works that are ongoing throughout the area.
"It is exciting to be involved in a project where £15m of private sector money is effectively bring injected into the local economy and there could be as many as 2,000 people working from these offices a couple of years from now"
Clearly there is still a role and a need for public sector support of regeneration projects carried out by the private sector. Ian from Adderstone Group recounts how, as an example of this, the Arc was very supportive of the proposals in teh early days and how he has enjoyed excellent support from the local planning authority.
"There are not many areas in the North-East where the head of planning will attend an urgent site meeting to discuss car parking provisions at 48 hours notice but certainly this was the case with Keith Lowe, head planner for Sunderland.
"We have found the planners in Sunderland to be extremely proactive and supportive, in fact more so than in any other areas we have worked in."
There is also support for private companies looking to grow their business or relocate their business in Sunderland. The incentives play an important role in boosting developers' confidence and encouraging them to take on ambitious projects such as Quay West.
Kevin Donkin, of Sunerland City Council's business investment team, said; "Although we don't offer direct financial assistance to developers, we can play a part in ensuring the success of their projects by helping to secure occupiers.
"We have a number of schemes aimed at attracting new investment to the city and helping employers already located here to grow.
"The offices proposed at Quay West are a perfect fit for many of the businesses we see establishing themselves in Sunderland, and the prestigious riverside location should prove highly attractive."
As part of the city council's package of financial incentives, eligible businesses that create new jobs and take additional floor-space may qualify for rent relief.
Developers will often offer their own incentives such as discounts for 'off-plan' purchases or rent free periods and, when coupled with the grants we can help them tap into, a brand-new office on a high quality business park can be a lot more affordable and less daunting than many business owners might imagine.
Work is set to start on Quay West in December with the first offices likely to be available within the year. Within two years, Adderstone expect thousands of employees ot be working at their desks in the same position as thousands once worked building ships.
It is important to see past the landmark public projects and appreciate the risks taken by the private companies that follow on; without the efforts of whom regeneration would stagnate into a series of pretty pointless token efforts.