Two Tees Valley development corporations moved major town-centre proposals forward in November 2023, with decisions affecting Gresham in Middlesbrough and Middleton Grange Shopping Centre in Hartlepool.
The Middlesbrough Development Corporation board selected Tarras Park Properties, working with local company iMpeC Development Ltd, as developer for a proposed £120 million overhaul of Gresham. The appointment followed an open competitive process.
A mixed-use plan for Gresham
The developer’s next job was to prepare a for the site. The brief included professional housing, student accommodation, business-incubation space and leisure uses, as well as better walking links with Teesside University.
Gresham had been the subject of discussion for years, so selecting a development partner was an important procedural step. It did not, by itself, amount to or a start on construction. Detailed design, approvals and delivery arrangements still had to follow.
In Hartlepool, the development corporation board backed proposals to take control of Middleton Grange Shopping Centre. The stated aim was to give the corporation greater influence over a central town asset, stabilise its future and create room to repurpose parts of the centre.
Two decisions, two long-term jobs
The projects were different in form. Gresham required a new mixed-use scheme to be designed, while Middleton Grange was an operating shopping centre with existing businesses and customers. Both decisions were presented as ways to put town-centre land and buildings under more active local direction.
Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen, who chaired the development corporations, welcomed the board backing and said it brought each scheme closer to physical work. His comments reflected the ambition attached to the decisions, while the practical next steps remained the production of plans, completion of transactions and the securing of necessary approvals.
For residents, the significance in late 2023 was therefore progress rather than completion. Middlesbrough had a preferred team to shape Gresham, and Hartlepool had board approval for a route towards control of Middleton Grange.
Both proposals would ultimately be judged by what followed: credible plans, occupied space, better connections and town centres that worked for the people already using them.
Archive : Board decisions and project details were checked against the Tees Valley Combined Authority report originally published on 30 November 2023. The original date and featured image are preserved.