Metro Riverside plans sent for scrutiny
The government will now consider the MetroGreen Area Action Plan, which proposes 990 homes around the Metrocentre by 2030 as part of a wider scheme to deliver a 4,500-home neighbourhood.
Supported by Mott MacDonald, Gillespies, and LDA Design, it will be delivered by Metrocentre in partnership with Gateshead Council across 52 acres of brownfield land surrounding the shopping centre.
The new neighbourhood in Gateshead will now have an independent inspector appointed to the project, to recommend any changes before the plans are formally adopted by the council.
Based on a ’20 minute destination’, which aims to have all residents’ needs located within a 20 minute walk, the carbon neutral district sits three miles from the Newcastle-Gateshead quayside.
A ‘reimagined’ Metrocentre will sit at the heart of the neighbourhood, with retail, a hotel, workspaces, and leisure options, as well as the ability to supply renewable energy to residents.
Estimates believe Metro Riverside could more than double the estate’s economic contribution to around £2bn a year by 2045.
Metrocentre chairman Martin Healy recently said: “Developments of this scale and ambition simply cannot be delivered in isolation.
“By working in partnership with Gateshead Council and others, we can bring together long-term investment, local leadership and shared purpose to create a new dense, urban community that delivers homes, jobs and opportunities, while ensuring Metrocentre continues to evolve as a major economic engine for the region for decades to come.”
