Pictures have emerged today (February 7) showing the progress made on developments surrounding a North East shopping centre and hotel.
Pictures submitted to The Northern Echo on Tuesday have shown the progress being made on the demolition of the Swallow Hotel on Stockton High Street, as work continues on Stockton Borough Council's redevelopment plan.
This comes as part of the council's £40 million scheme, which saw the demolition of the neighbouring Castlegate Shopping Centre begin last May, in which SBC plan to transform the area into a new waterfront development.
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The project will connect the High Street to the river with a land bridge structure, and is aiming to be open by 2025.
According to the council, the project is also seeking to offer an accessible space for community events.
The pictures taken show work is seemingly progressing smoothly on the project, leaving residents excited by the prospect of Stockton's new skyline.
Speaking on the demolition in September 2022, Labour councillor, Nigel Cooke, said: "The demolition of the Castlegate and the Swallow Hotel will transform the look and feel of the High Street and make the most of our town’s riverside setting.
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“We’re at a really exciting stage and I can’t wait to see how it progresses. Stockton Waterfront will complement all of the changes we’ve made in recent years to make our town centres places where people want to visit for different reasons other than shopping.”
Meanwhile, Tees Valley mayor Ben Houchen said: “This is the first phase of Stockton’s transformation to do just that, bringing the river and town closer together to create a proper leisure space everyone can enjoy."
The Hotel, which had been empty since 2009. had been considered an eyesore by residents before its initial demolition in 2021.
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Scaffolding has also since been erected on the Castlegate centre to prepare for the demolition of its southern section.
New facilities are planned as part of the southern expanse of the project – including a replacement leisure centre for Splash, a library, NHS facility and customer service centre for Stockton folk.
Here are some more pictures of the site in its current state:
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