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Lower Steenbergs Yard

A development of 28 generous apartments above commercial workspace on a challenging riverside site.
Night sky with the apartments illumination and reflected in the adjacent river

The development is located adjacent to the award-winning Toffee Factory managed workspace, which Cundall helped design, and represents a continuation of a long history of our work on complex riverside regeneration schemes in this area. This narrow site is located adjacent to the Ouseburn River, had complex buried services to build around, a significant retaining structure at the west of the site and a river wall in poor condition.

Key challenges included creating a high-quality scheme within tight costs constraints on a complex site, accommodating residential development within an existing commercial area. We also had to ensure that noise concerns could be overcome whilst accommodating development on a site with significant engineering constraints including existing retaining walls.

Ian Cansfield, Director of Planning, comments, "This has been a fantastic project to work on over the last eight years since we started feasibility work. The Cundall team have been a key part of the project, with every discipline in the practice involved. The site had several key challenges packed into its small dimensions. These have included challenging ground conditions and land contamination, remnant structures and river walls to reinforce, flood levels to manage, access and circulation challenges, a demanding sustainability brief and lots of detailed negotiations throughout the planning process. Now that it is finished, we can all rightly stand back and be proud of what we have achieved!"

Key fact

The development will provide approximately 800m² office space and improved highways access along the riverside.

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Key fact

Close liaison with Northumbrian Water was required throughout the project duration.

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Key fact

Given the clear sustainability agenda set by the client, we avoided over-provision of car parking and promoted sustainable modes of transport.

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Ian Cansfield in a meeting room with glass window background wearing a blue suit and shirt

Ian Cansfield

Director, Planning and EIA

View bio

There were lots of constraints to work within but the whole team worked very hard to produce a fantastic scheme that all are proud of.

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