Vaux
The masterplan for this 10.44ha (26 acres) site, which includes the Sunderland City Council owned Galley's Gill area, is a vision for the future of the city. Situated right at the heart of Sunderland, beside the River Wear, Vaux Village will become a lively community set within a development of international quality on a site offering superb views over Sunderland. The masterplan has been designed by Piers Gough and Andrew Daws of CZWG. At the centre of this development will be a lively retail area including bars, restaurants and other public facilities while the area towards the river will incorporate tall residential buildings edged by new gardens and connecting to the existing riverside to create a parkland setting.
The Vaux masterplan will bring the City back to the river and the river back to the City. The former Vaux Brewery site, set dramatically above the River Wear on the northern edge of Sunderland City Centre, is a great challenge and a superb opportunity. This redevelopment will reinforce the urban grain and create new connections to and from the heart of the city. Housing of real quality will be created within a regenerated environment incorporating commercial buildings, retail and leisure which will generate thousands of new jobs.
This is a regeneration project of international importance with significant public and private sector backing. The Secretary of State approved the arc’s outline planning application for the scheme in March 2007. Further endorsement was given to these proposals following a public inquiry into planned alterations to the City Council’s UDP. On this occasion a Government inspector concluded in August 2007 that major retail development should be confined to a central retail core, strengthening the arc’s plans for an office and residential-led development.
The Vaux site`s dramatic geography and former use has, for generations, held this area apart from the activity and bustle of the city centre. This separation was appropriate for the site`s former industrial usage. However, the site can now be `reconnected` to Sunderland, to the revitalised city centre, linked to the High Street and to the Bridges Shopping Centre.
Fully integrated with the thriving city, giving local people a real sense of ownership, this new development will be a powerful symbol of the drive and creativity of the entire North East of England. The plan envisages:
Over one thousand new homes
- New office accommodation (generating around 3,000 new jobs)
- Two new hotels
- A new central square
- A riverside pedestrian route and a superb riverside park
Piers Gough’s masterplan for the site
Model of the Vaux site
Artists impression of Vaux (by day)
Impression of Vaux (by night)