Pilgrim Place: 'New beginning' for Newcastle city centre site

A newly approved £110m development will herald the "start of a new beginning" for a run-down corner of Newcastle city centre, councillors have heard.

Pilgrim Place, centred on land which previously housed the Worswick Street bus station and a car park, includes 10 and 12 storey office buildings.

It will also feature a large public square at the centre of the site.

Some of the historic buildings nearby are intended be refurbished and turned into shops and restaurants.

Newcastle City Council's planning committee unanimously approved the scheme, put forward by the Reuben Brothers' Taras Properties.

Last month the same developer was granted permission to transform the area's former fire station into a five-star hotel.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service said concerns about the plans had been raised by heritage organisations and the neighbouring St Andrew's Catholic Church, which feared the scheme amounted to "overdevelopment" and would cause  "significant overlooking and loss of privacy".

But council planning officer Julie Seaton told the meeting the project will restore listed buildings that have been left in a "very poor state" and the benefits outweighed any negative impact.

Councillor Ged Bell, cabinet member for neighbourhoods and transport, said: "The 300 construction jobs and 2,300 other jobs created by the offices, bars and restaurants will be great for the employment prospects of our residents.

"After a very long wait, it will herald the start of a new beginning for the city centre and attract economic activity we have only dreamed of in the past."

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