The landmark four-storey project to be known as Culture House will include an indoor city square featuring digital wall screens to create striking displays.

The 80,000 sq ft library complex will replace four existing buildings on the site next to Keele Square and has been designed by FaulknerBrowns to become a focal point of the wider Riverside Sunderland regeneration masterplan.

Culture House central lounge will feature digital panels for an immersive sound and vision experience

Structural engineer Shed has designed a hybrid steel celluar beam and cross-laminate timber frame with a brick envelope.

Under present procurement plans the project will go out to tender in April with the aim to start on site in the Autumn.

The new building is expected to attract more than half a million visits a year and will draw people from across the city and beyond, contributing to city centre regeneration and enhancing Sunderland’s exciting cultural offer.