NUFC: Strawberry Place decision in November

Author: Micky WelchPublished 15th Oct 2019

City chiefs will deliver their verdict next month on a controversial £120m development that could prevent St James’ Park from being expanded and block views of the iconic stadium.

A vision to build hundreds of flats, offices, and a hotel in Strawberry Place has sparked fury among Newcastle United fans, who fear that it will obscure a “defining feature of the Newcastle skyline” and hinder any future extension of the famous Gallowgate End.

Newcastle City Council has now confirmed that it will decide whether to grant planning permission for the huge project in November.

While the exact date of the decision has not been set in stone, civic centre officials say that the scheme is due to come before the authority’s planning committee on either November 8 or November 29.

There are currently 676 objections lodged against the plans – plus concerns raised by the Newcastle United Supporters Trust (NUST), which represents 10,000 Magpies supporters.

The trust says that the land should be “safeguarded for the future” of the football club and has argued that the new buildings, the tallest of which has 21 storeys, are “out of keeping with what the site can accommodate”.

The land was sold by football club and Sports Direct owner Mike Ashley for £9m earlier this year to Durham-based Helios Investment Partners and Doncaster developer Marrico Asset Management LLP.

One fan objecting to the plans told the council: “This development prevents any potential for any future development of St James’ Park, stifling the potential for any future growth plans that the club would have at this historic ground.

“Not only that the development would completely alter the city’s iconic skyline that sees the stadium as part of its backdrop and is not in keeping with the tradition of the city.”

The council has said it will accept objections to the proposal “right up until the date of the planning committee “.

The scheme comprises a 21-storey building with 204 apartments inside, a 12-storey office block, a 13-storey hotel with 200 bedrooms, and another residential building of 10 floors with 124 flats.

The Sir Bobby Robson Memorial Garden would also be relocated above the St James’ Park Metro station.

In new documents submitted to the council last week, Ryder Architecture states that the height of the buildings “has been designed and tested to ensure that they sit comfortably with the adjacent buildings and within the wider context”.

They add: “The footprints of the new buildings have been located to preserve key views to the Gallowgate stand of St James’ Park from both the head of St James’ Boulevard and the Chinese Gate.