Decision date set for £10million drive-thru coffee shop and industrial units plans for former Littlewoods site in Sunderland

Sunderland City Council’s Planning and Highways Committee are due to discuss proposals for vacant land off Commercial Road, near the Raich Carter Sports Centre.

The Hendon site was once the home of the Littlewoods call centre and warehouse and over the years several planning bids have been put forward to redevelop the land.

Although plans for a builders merchants with trade counters were approved by the city council in May, 2019, no development was ever brought forward.

New plans for the site are being led by Promenade Park Properties and have been designed by Sunderland architect and engineering practice Building Design (Northern) Ltd.

Those behind the scheme have described the industrial park as a £10million development which could create up to 150 jobs if given the green light.

Plans include the demolition of an existing warehouse and the construction of seven buildings for general industrial, storage and distribution or light industrial uses, along with associated parking and landscaping.

In addition the plans include a drive-thru coffee shop with associated access, including modifications to the access onto Robinson Terrace and an internal roadway, as well as self-contained electric vehicle charging facilities.

During a council consultation exercise on the plans no comments were received from the public or ward councillors.

A report prepared by council planning officers ahead of a decision-making meeting next week has recommended the industrial park for approval.

Despite the proposed coffee shop being based on allocated industrial land, council planning officers deemed the development acceptable on balance.

It was noted that the coffee shop would be “complementary” to the development by “providing somewhere to visit whilst charging an electric vehicle or more generally for staff and visitors to the proposed industrial units”.

According to council planners, consultation responses from the council’s ecologist and highway officers are anticipated to be positive, with a final update given to councillors next week.

The council committee report adds: “The balance of the proposed development would be provided on the majority of the site and would contribute towards the ambitions of the [council’s] city plan by supporting more and better jobs as part of a dynamic smart city.

“The proposed charging station would also contribute towards the low carbon framework and low carbon action plan, by providing a facility for the charging of electric vehicles”.

In terms of sustainability, it was also noted that there would be roof-mounted solar panels on the industrial units and the canopies for the proposed charging station.

A design and access statement submitted to council officials earlier this year named the scheme in CGI images as ‘Eastgate Point”.

Industrial units would be offered in a range of sizes, including smaller buildings running adjacent to Commercial Road and three buildings in the centre of the site aimed at “larger occupiers”.

Plans indicate that there would be 19 units provided across the seven industrial buildings on site, with three units in each of the four smaller buildings and the remainder of units based across the three larger buildings.

The plans have previously been welcomed by councillor Graeme Miller, leader of Sunderland City Council, who described the site as an “untapped opportunity” to create more space for businesses.

The final decision on the plan rests with members of the Planning and Highways Committee, who will next meet on Monday, October 30.

The meeting is scheduled to take place at City Hall from 5.30pm and will be open to the public.

For more information on the planning application visit Sunderland City Council’s planning portal website and search reference: 23/01526/FU4