Once a site housing the 1960s Civic Centre, and its Brutalist architecture, the large area of land running from the back of Park Lane Interchange to the edge of Mowbray Park is now home to West Park Quarter.
Part of a wider drive to double the population of the city centre in the coming years - with another 1000 homes being built as part of the Riverside development on either side of the river - it comprises 265 new homes, a mix of houses and apartments.
The show homes for the Linden Homes properties on the site opened over the summer and sales manager Sophie Coverdale said there’s been a lot of interest.
“We’ve had a lot of footfall, it’s one of our busiest sites in the region,” she explained.
Since opening the show homes, they’ve sold five homes, including the two show homes themselves. Across the site as a whole, 70% of the properties have been pre-sold.
Sales consultant Georgie Stopford said the location has been a big draw. “So many people have seen the development take shape so there’s been a lot of interest,” she said. “The feedback has been really positive, people don’t expect the townhouses to be so spacious.
“We’ve also had more of a mix of buyers than we expected, with a mix of first-time buyers, families and some people wanting to downsize. They like having the benefit of a new build where everything is done, while also being close to the city centre.”
Ahead of the the first occupants moving in later this year, we went for a look around:
5. Communal space
Within the centre of the development, two large communal gardens are also being created. | Sunderland Echo
6. Parking
Each of the homes has been built with a designated parking bay. There's also some visitor parking bays across the site. The development is also incorporating cycling and pedestrian links, improving public access to and from the city centre. | Sunderland Echo
7. New chapter
Plans for the redevelopment of the former Sunderland Civic Centre building were revealed in March 2021, as part of the council's move to new City Hall premises on the former Vaux site. | Sunderland Echo
8. Housebuilder
Permission was granted to Vistry North East, part of the Vistry Group, to replace the Civic Centre building - well known for its Brutalist architecture - with a new city centre community in April 2022. Demolition started that October and was completed in February 2023, with construction of the new West Park Quarter moving forward at pace. | Sunderland Echo