Plans approved for new Sunderland Greggs, Costa and B&M on former Farringdon Police Station site

Proposals for the former Farringdon Hall Police Station site and surrounding land off Durham Road went before Sunderland City Council’s Planning and Highways Committee on Monday evening.

The building, which has been empty since it was closed by Northumbria Police in 2015 due to budget cuts, is now set to be demolished to pave the way for a £10million investment creating new business units.

Developers have already confirmed the majority of businesses linked to the scheme, including B&M Home and Garden, a Costa Coffee drive-thru, Greggs, a tanning shop and a veterinary practice.

Councillors at Monday’s meeting praised the proposals submitted by Almscliffe Deshi Developments for the site.

Councillor Melanie Thornton, committee chair, said: “It is an eyesore, how there hasn’t been any major incidents there I don’t know, but luckily there hasn’t been that I’m aware of anyway.”

The report from council planning officers had recommended the retail scheme for approval, subject to routine conditions being met, which was unanimously backed by councillors.

The committee report states the development would create a total of 103 full-time equivalent jobs and “increased facilities and consumer choice for residents in the local area and further afield”.

It also notes that the plans would “secure the demolition of a building which is a significant visual blight on the local area”.

In recent years the building has become a hotspot for vandalism and antisocial behaviour prompting warnings that the derelict site could put lives at risk.

The plans to demolish the eyesore building have been welcomed in the community.

Councillor Phil Tye, who has long campaigned for the former police station site to be redeveloped, spoke at the meeting in favour of the proposals, stating they were “music to residents’ ears” after years of problems.

He added: “I said at a committee meeting [five years ago] if we don’t do something about that building a child is going to die.

“The building was full from floor to ceiling of fly-tipped rubbish, everything from tyres to fridges, it’s been a tireless effort.

“Believe it or not metal shutters were fixed to that building so people couldn’t gain access, and someone stole the metal shutters, that’s the sort of challenges we’ve had on this particular site, it’s not for the want of trying to do the right thing.”

The Silksworth representative also praised the developer for working closely with him and other ward councillors around the development.

Cllr Tye added he would “expect to see the site come down September/October” time.

The new development will provide a total of 110 parking spaces, including seven accessible bays and an eight-bay electric vehicle charging station.

Plans will also see new access arrangements with a primary access from North Moor Lane with a ‘left-turn only’ arrangement, a second exit point directly onto Durham Road and a connection through to the access road for the neighbouring McDonald’s unit.