Plans submitted for £15m retail park

Chris BindingLocal Democracy Reporting Service
News imageLDRS A computer generated image of the proposed retail development in Silksworth set to house an M&S Foodhall, Aldi supermarket and Starbucks drive-thru. The M&S and Aldi unit is a one-storey building with white cladding and a car park in front of it. At the opposite end of the car park from the shops is a small single-storey building with wood cladding housing a Starbucks drive-thru.LDRS
If approved, Sunderland's new retail park is expected to create more than 100 jobs

Plans to build a £15m retail park promising to create more than 100 jobs have been submitted.

Sunderland City Council has received an application which would see a new M&S Foodhall, Aldi supermarket and Starbucks drive-thru built off Silksworth Lane.

Planning documents said, if the retail park is built, it would create 125 full-time jobs, as well as providing employment for about 150 people during building work.

"The proposed development represents a significant investment into Sunderland," it was claimed in supporting documents.

The M&S Foodhall would be the retailer's second large store in the city, following the recent opening of its expanded store in Washington and the closure of its High Street West base in Sunderland city centre in 2024.

A planning statement said access to the new shops would be created by adding an exit to the existing Silksworth Lane roundabout, already used for the nearby Sainsbury's and The Range stores.

The plans were initially announced earlier this year and residents were invited to review the plans ahead of the formal submission by developer PRZM Real Estate.

Sunderland City Council's planning portal website lists a decision deadline of 21 April.

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