Ouseburn tower: Revamped design of 'abysmal' building revealed

Developers behind a proposed quayside block of flats that sparked mass protests have released a new design.

PfP-igloo went back to the drawing board after its plans for an 18-storey complex at Malmo Quay in Newcastle were condemned as "abysmal".

The firm has now published images of a "more modest" 10-storey tower containing 43 homes.

The new plans have been submitted to Newcastle City Council for consideration.

More than 1,500 objections were made against the original tower design, which was unfavourably likened to a cheese-grater, during a formal consultation earlier this year, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

As in the original scheme, there are plans for 13 three-storey townhouses on Malmo Quay and up to 73 homes in buildings up to eight storeys tall on neighbouring Spillers Quay.

Ouseburn's popular Free Trade Inn rallied opposition to the previous scheme, fearing the huge tower would dominate the East End skyline and block the famous view of the Quayside from its beer garden.

The Ouseburn Trust has opposed the plans after hearing the "overwhelming dislike" from residents at a public forum, at which the previous tower was branded "manky" and "an eyesore".

Alec Hamlin, development manager at PfP-igloo, said the redesign "will create a place that is sensitive to the character of surrounding neighbourhoods" in response to the public outcry over the original plan.

He said the architects has struck "a good balance" between public feedback and providing open spaces, spacious homes and "a degree of height that marks the meeting of the River Tyne and the Ouseburn".

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