Controversial plans for a major housing development at the mouth of the Ouseburn remain on the table.
While last week saw the expiry of planning permission for the gigantic Whey Aye wheel project, building plans to radically transform a neighbouring site on Newcastle’s riverside are still in the works. Developers PfP-igloo caused a commotion when they unveiled designs for an 18-storey tower on the vacant Malmo Quay site in 2021, with concerns that the 223ft block would dominate the skyline at the eastern end of the Quayside.
But those plans were then redrawn after a public backlash and now feature a 10-storey complex on the Malmo plot, with a further 73 homes also planned on Spillers Quay – next to where the 460ft ferris wheel was proposed for. Updates on the development had gone quiet since the scaled-back plans were revealed last August, but there has now been progress that takes the scheme closer to a decision being made by Newcastle City Council on whether it is allowed to go ahead.
Read More: Locals call for fresh start for 'neglected' Newcastle riverside plot after Whey Aye wheel saga
A raft of new documents, the first since last October, have appeared on the council’s planning website in the past two weeks – including draft legal agreements and a revised masterplan for the area. When approached by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, PfP-igloo said only that it was “continuing to work” with the city council in processing the planning application.
The proposals would see 13 townhouses also built on Malmo Quay and the popular Cycle Hub relocated there too, while up to 73 homes in a set of buildings up to eight storeys tall would be built on Spillers Quay.
More than 1,500 objections were made against the original 18-storey tower idea, with locals’ worries including concern about the Free Trade Inn’s famous view of the Quayside being blocked. And the pub, local councillors, and businesses at the Toffee Factory are among those who have continued to object to the redrawn plans, with dozens more objection letters having been lodged with the council.
The Free Trade Inn has said that the latest proposal “falls very far short” of hopes for a “world class” development on a site that has been in limbo for decades. Other opponents have argued that the housing block will “ still tower far above everything around it” and would be an “eyesore”.
The developer has argued that the scheme would bring a £4m per year boost to the city’s economy and “restore, repurpose, and revitalise” a piece of former industrial land that has been the subject of multiple failed regeneration bids in the past.
In a statement submitted to the council by planning consultants Cundall, they said: “The proposed development will secure high-quality development on site that is identified in the Lower Ouseburn Valley Conservation Area Appraisal as a potential enhancement opportunity. The development of the site will also improve links to the Quayside by providing an attractive location which may be used as a stopping point for pedestrians and cyclists travelling to and from the Ouseburn.
“The scheme will create a destination in its own right with the proposed relocation of the Cycle Hub café and new public seating areas both providing an anchor. The scheme will support the on-going successful regeneration of the Ouseburn Valley which PfP-igloo has been a key driver; having led on other developments in Ouseburn including the multi-award-winning scheme ‘The Malings’ and the more recent Lower Steenbergs Yard Site. The widespread post-development recognition of such schemes strengthens Ouseburn’s position as one of the “coolest neighbourhoods in the world right now” (Time Out Magazine, October 2021), which will attract a greater number of visitors and residents to the local area. The increased footfall to the local area will, in turn, support local businesses.”
