Member Article

Shortlist for Gateshead development announced

Gateshead Council has announced the nine firms who are bidding for housing developments worth up to £1bn in the town.

The council launched a search last November aimed at finding a partner to develop a number of housing sites throughout Gateshead. The first stage of the procurement exercise is now complete and 15 possible partners have been reduced down to nine.

They are; Barratt Homes, CM Yuill and Gentoo, Compendium Group (comprisingRiverside group and Lovell Partnership), Home Group and Galifordtry, Keepmoat,McInerney Homes NE, Miller Homes, Persimmon Homes, and Taylor Wimpey.

Stuart Timmiss, Head of Planning and Environmental Strategy for Gateshead Council, said: “We are very pleased with the response. Developers have confirmed that this is right approach, especially in today’s economic climate.

“We have had 15 high quality expressions of interest and whittling them down to nine has been difficult.

“However, the next stage is about clarifying which of the developers share our ambitions for high quality, sustainable places, and understand the long-term commitment needed to work alongside our communities and do everything necessary to make this project succeed.”

As part of the next stage of the selection process, each of the nine companies will be asked to submit more detailed proposals for the delivery of housing and neighbourhood regeneration.

Gateshead Council expects to short-list three companies for the final round of the project.

In June last year, the council agreed to procure a lead developer or a consortium to transform 19 separate sites.

The proposal will lead to the construction of over 2,500 new family homes as well as improvements to existing homes in Central Gateshead, developing what appears to be largest housing regeneration project in the UK.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .