Makam An Offer They Can’t Refuse
The Daily Telegraph, May 15th 2008The Makams have been vying with the Geordies for years. Newcastle may have the edge at the moment, but the Makams (so called because of the accent - they’ll “mak” rather than make, you an offer) say it won’t be long before Sunderland will be tops. The city, which has 10,000 more people on its electoral register than Newcastle, has a lot going for it - fabulous beaches; the Stadium of Light; Roker Marina, a thriving development of waterside apartments and townhouses, with restaurants and an activity centre; new direct train route to London; and an ongoing massive regeneration programme.
The Doxford International Business Park on the outskirts of the city is thriving and Nissan, which is building a new £4.5 million distribution centre, announced in January that it was to increase its workforce by 800, with council leader Bob Symonds welcoming it as proof that the city is on the up.
Alongside Nissan, the new Turbine Business Park should bring in another 4,000 new jobs. All this is good news for the building industry, as hundreds, if not thousands, of homes will be required over the next few years.
Several developments are under way in the centre, but one remaining eyesore is the 25 acre Vaux brewery site, which straddles the River Wear covered in brambles and tumbleweed. The site was sold Tesco in 2001, but the company couldn’t obtain planning permission and now hoardings around the site promise something far better than a supermarket and vast car park.
Sunderland arc, the regeneration arm of the council, and Piers Gough of CZMG Architects have created a masterplan for the striking development with hotel, leisure and 1,000 residential units, guaranteed to transform the city in 10 years’ time.
“People are moving here for a better work/life balance” says Brendan Hackett, whose company Hackett Property, is involved with most of the new schemes. “It’s one of the few cities right by the sea with three beaches and surrounded by green belt.”
Eric and Iris Dryden, who have lived in a three bedroom bungalow on the outskirts of Sunderland for 23 years, are taking the radical decision to move into the city centre. They have bought a brand new two-bedroom flat at Thornlea Court in the Thornhill Park area.
“My garden is full of spring bulbs and last year I had 96 hanging baskets,” says Eric, who has retired from the Post Office. “I love gardening, but the bungalow is too big for us now. I never thought we would live in an apartment and many of my friends think I’ve lost my marbles because we have no garden.”
“But when we saw the flat, we were both knocked over by it, Thornhill Park used to be the most sought after street in Sunderland – and still is – and the flat is out of this world, luxurious and well-built. The city centre is five minutes walk away and the Metro is around the corner, Sunderland still has a long way to go to catch up with Newcastle,” he admits, “but once the Vaux site gets moving it will start to happen.”
Thornlea Court, which is being built by the Thornsett Group, is a gated development with 28 two bedroom apartments and penthouses from £162,500 to £295,000. These are being sold by Hackett.
It’s Thornsett’s first venture into Sunderland. The Irish company has targeted the city because it felt it had been neglected but was on the up. “We also went because of the Roy Keane effect” says director Bernadette Cunningham. “We have a lot of Irish contacts who were interested in north-east England.”
Thornsett is also hoping to build a hotel and flats on the site of the Pullman Hotel, overlooking Seaburn Beach. “The sea front, which is very down at heel at the moment, could be the jewel in the city’s crown,” Cunningham adds.