MULTI-MILLION pound plans to turn Gateshead's riverfront into a revellers' paradise to rival Newcastle Quayside have been put on hold.

Gateshead Council has announced that proposals to emulate Newcastle's hugely successful riverside redevelopment with a district of bars, cafes, clubs and restaurants, on the south bank of the Tyne, have been temporarily suspended.

The authority has instead commissioned a fresh study into the Gateshead Quays site, which sits between the Sage Gateshead music centre and the Baltic arts centre, next to a £50m executive housing development by builders Taylor Woodrow.

Plans for the eight-acre site that were drafted seven years ago allocated it for a mixed-use leisure development of restaurants, bars and a hotel.

But planning bosses feel the area has progressed so much that the proposals need to be revised before they can go ahead.

Derek Quinn, the council's group director of development and enterprise, said: "Gates-head and Taylor Woodrow have worked closely together and we have been greatly impressed by the success of the superb residential development behind the Baltic.

"However, the environment around the site and the market for leisure have moved on and simply amending the original proposed leisure scheme is no longer an option.

"We need to fundamentally re-assess what we can do with this prime site and look at its role in the wider redevelopment of Gateshead."

About half a billion pounds has already been poured into the rejuvenation of Gateshead Quays, including the Hilton hotel, residential developments and the music and art centres.

A £250m, 53-acre business and commercial quarter is being constructed nearby, and the council also has plans to overhaul the aging town centre.

The study will investigate all of the site's potential uses and look at current market conditions.