A former Gateshead pub is set to be transformed into luxury flats after proposals were waved through by planners.
North East developer Modo Bloc has secured permission to create nine self-serviced apartments at the former Causeway Hotel site, in the Sheriff Hill area of Gateshead, which will be called Causeway Lofts. Redevelopment of the old Causeway – known to locals as The Causey - will be starting shortly and the £1m project will see nine one-bedroom plush apartments come on the market when the scheme is completed in the summer of 2024.
Designers say the space will be “efficiently redesigned, maximising the potential use of the building for private development purposes”. The project will be styled and developed much like an earlier scheme that Modo Bloc brought to the market in 2021 – Chelmsford Lofts, a stylish eight-flat aparthotel in Sandyford, Newcastle.
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Elsewhere, Modo Bloc is currently developing a former care home in Forest Hall, Newcastle, into 12 self-serviced luxury apartments, just off Station Road, at Springfield Park. The £2m project is due to be completed within the next few months and will be handed over and managed by Your Lofts, a subsidiary company of Modo Bloc. Accommodation managed by Your Lofts is proving popular with people booking weekend ‘staycations’ and longer corporate stays.
George Jenkins, MD of Modo Bloc, said: “Causeway Lofts will be delivered to the same high standard of building construction and interior design as Chelmsford Lofts. These are designed with an aspirational, modern standard of living. The site is in an ideal location for the Queen Elizabeth Hospital, and only four miles from Newcastle city centre.
“Chelmsford Lofts was a bit of a pilot, but I have been delighted with the market response. This has convinced me to grow this side of the business and seek other land and investment opportunities to deliver similar schemes elsewhere.”
Over the last two to three years, Modo Bloc has pipelined over £60m worth of developments. Mr Jenkins said he and his team have moved on from student accommodation and small refurbishments to larger residential conversions along with building new homes and commercial developments, including several housing projects in and around the Ouseburn area.
In Ouseburn, Modo Bloc wants to redevelop the former Grievesons Yard, having submitted plans to Newcastle City Council to create 84 one, two and three-bedroomed apartments on the one-acre site, saying that many of the flats will have their own balconies.
The development – which would also include some business units available for retail and other uses – would be Modo Bloc’s largest scheme to date. The company is also behind £8.5m plans to build 28 apartments within a single five-storey structure on Foundry Lane.
Mr Jenkins added: “We have ambitious plans to build more design-led homes and develop more land for both residential and commercial use with exceptional artisanship at the forefront. We’re always looking at interesting investment and development options in North East communities and beyond.”
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