Plans submitted to demolish 'redundant' and potentially 'dangerous' buildings at Sunderland City Council's Houghton depot
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Sunderland City Council has submitted an application to its own planning department for its depot at Market Place Industrial Estate in the Houghton area.
The site is described as a council waste management depot, consisting of waste storage areas, offices, garages and workshops.
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Hide AdNew plans for the site include the proposed demolition of a central block consisting of three single-storey warehouses and a single-storey toilet block.
The buildings sit opposite the depot’s main entrance at Gravel Walks and according to council planning documents, are “isolated by the site’s internal one way road system”.
A planning application from local authority officials confirms demolition is proposed on “the grounds of economy and health and safety”.
The planning application states: “The buildings have exceeded their useful economic lifespan, they are now redundant, in a very poor state of repair, are structurally deteriorating and are now posing a danger to the council site operators, council staff, visitors and the general public”.
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Hide AdProposed demolition work includes taking the buildings down to ‘ground floor slab level’ and clearing the site of all materials and debris.
The buildings are expected to be soft stripped with items separated for recycling, with demolition taking place in a “controlled manner” via “both mechanical means and hand stripping”.
Subject to planning permission being granted, project bosses hope to start demolition works in mid-March and finish works by the end of April.
The planning application also confirms that no “redevelopment or rebuilding” is proposed at a later date.
A decision on the planning application will be made once a period of council consultation has concluded.