Residents' views sought over housing campus

Residents are being asked for their views on plans to create a "a proper neighbourhood" in the heart of Middlesbrough, combining housing, schools, business and leisure facilties.

Middlesbrough Council and developer Capital&Centric want to build 462 new homes on land around the Old Town Hall in Middlehaven, to sit alongside education and sports facilities, shops, restaurants and public gardens.

The developer said campus plans would "introduce the missing piece" to the area, allowing residents "to live, learn, work and play, all in one place".

Capital&Centric's Dan White urged people to join the public consultation and "tell us what they love, what they don't and what would make it even better".

The executive unanimously approved the use of £3.6m from the Towns Fund grant allocation to develop designs in November last year.

Last week, Labour councillor Theo Furness described the plans as "hugely exciting" and a "big opportunity for Middlesbrough".

"Building thousands of attractive new homes is key to our vision for the town centre," he said

He added: "The area has a proud past and I know it means a great deal to many people," reiterating it was "really important" that people had their say on the plans.

Peter Gavigan, fellow Labour councillor, previously said it would be wise to "proceed with caution" given the number of "false dawns" in the past.

"If it does come to a point where it's not feasible, we've got to be honest and say it's not feasible," Furness said, speaking in 2025.

"We're not going to promise something that we can't deliver. But we will do our utmost best as a council and as officers to obviously bring this forward."

A drop-in public consultation will take place at TigerIvy, in Albert Road, on Thursday, 10 September, from 16:00 to 19:00 BST.

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