Homes plan moves forward after years-long wait
Taylor WimpeyPlans for 250 homes on a riverside site have been submitted - eight years after demolition was completed on the estate previously occupying the land.
Bulldozers moved on to Gateshead's Clasper Village in 2015, but work was stopped when the final resident, Michael Crossman, refused to leave his two-bedroom flat where he had lived for almost 50 years.
He eventually moved out in December 2017 with demolition completed the following year.
Developer Taylor Wimpey said the planning application "marks a significant milestone for the site" in the Teams area of the borough, overlooking the River Tyne.
If approved by Gateshead Council, the scheme will include one to four-bedroom homes with 15% - approximately 37 - to be bought by the local authority.
Of those, the council says two-thirds will be made available for social rent with the remaining third classed as being for affordable sale, which sees properties listed for a discount on the market value to help the likes of first-time buyers.
Land and planning director at Taylor Wimpey North East Mark Fletcher said the proposals "deliver a thoughtfully designed neighbourhood that reflects the character of the riverside while creating new opportunities for people to live close to the centres of Gateshead and Newcastle".
The land will be prepared for development using £3m of funding secured through the North East Mayor, Labour's Kim McGuinness.
The council first revealed plans for a new development as far back as 2011, saying it would be cheaper to build new social housing rather than refurbish the existing flats and tackle anti-social behaviour.
Plans for 200 homes were then mooted in 2019 before being dropped in 2022, with the Labour-led authority citing a rise in costs.
However, in 2024, it told the BBC it remained "committed" to transforming the area and last year Taylor Wimpey was chosen as the developer following a tender process.
The council's strategic director for housing, the environment and healthy communities, Samantha Allcott, said the proposals "are just what this area needs, as we move our housing regeneration programme onwards".
Earlier this week, it was announced the council had signed a deal to help create a 4,500-home neighbourhood at nearby Dunston, close to the Metrocentre shopping mall.