CONSTRUCTION is under way to create the biggest piazza that has been built on Tyneside for more than a century.

The open space, in East Blenheim Street, Newcastle, features an open air amphitheatre and will create a new way of living and working in the city.

London and Regional Properties is the developer behind the 70,000sq ft scheme, which stems from its ongoing restoration of the 1933 Art Deco building Alfred Wilson House, now the apartment building Centralofts.

Centralofts will overlook the piazza, and a number of other organisations will front it, including a development by Crosby Homes, a hotel, Dance City and a variety of cafes and bars.

Geoff Springer, director of London and Regional Properties, said: "It is the biggest piazza to be built in the North-East for 100 years.

"It will create a wonderful atmosphere in this part of the city, with the whole area around the development being regenerated.

"All surrounding buildings will provide a lively and transparent frontage on to the piazza and there will be a variety of retail, caf and bar uses, which can spill out into the open public space."

The piazza is gently terraced, with inset floor lighting to guide people towards the centre, where a shallow amphitheatre will be created as a performance space for Dance City and the College for Performing Arts.

There will also be terraced seating, feature lighting, trees, planters and ornamental shrubs to complement the paving, which will be a variety of colours and textures.