'Positive vision for post-Brexit Sunderland' - city leaders react to £25million funding to boost city centre

The Government has named 72 high streets that will receive a share of a £831million fund designed to stimulate the recovery of town and city centres following the Covid-19 pandemic.

Sunderland, along with Swindon, is to get the most money, which will be used to build on Sunderland City Council’s Riverside Sunderland development.

Sunderland City Council leader Coun Graeme Miller said: “We have been ploughing ahead with our plans to boost the city centre over the last 18 months, and – despite the challenges of the pandemic – we have not lost any momentum.

“This announcement will provide an additional boost as we look forward to 2021.

"Our plans will regenerate the whole area, with the benefits of this new urban quarter spilling out to the whole city centre.

“The focus is on creating new spaces that will attract footfall to the city, giving our businesses and traders an opportunity to tap into the spending power of these visitors.”

He added: “We are pushing forward with our plans at lightning pace to ensure that the benefits are felt as quickly as possible, and that we drive a step change in the city centre.

Conservative Leader Coun Antony Mullen said: “The fact nowhere else in the country has been awarded more shows the Government’s commitment to our city.

“The Government has a very positive vision for Sunderland’s post-Brexit future and it has demonstrated with this announcement that it is willing to give us the financial help we need to breathe new life into our city centre.”

haron Appleby, head of business operations at Sunderland Business Improvement District (BID), said: “This is a phenomenal announcement and cements what – despite the huge challenges of COVID – has been an incredible year for the city.

“The amount of positive news coming out of the city centre is unprecedented – millions and millions of pounds of investment, and a clear vision that will transform the area. It’s such an exciting time for Sunderland and I look forward to working with the council and with our traders to ensure we seize the benefits this will bring.”

The funding news is the latest in a long line of positive investment announcements to come out of Sunderland city centre in recent weeks.

In October 2020, the council revealed ambitions to create a world-class new place to live, work and play at Riverside Sunderland in a plan that includes one million sq ft of modern office space, in a new central business district; transformation of Galley’s Gill into a landscape park; and a new ‘smart bridge’ connecting the city centre to the Stadium of Light area, featuring light installations and virtual reality.

And at the end of November, the council announced it is looking to deliver a £27million improvement programme focused on the train station, including demolition and reconstruction of a new southern concourse to improve the welcome point for visitors travelling by train.

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