Sunderland has the River Wear running through the city dividing it in two. The South part of the city is mainly residential but only 30% of the North is residential.
In 1589 salt was made in Sunderland. Seawater was heated, the water evaporated and the salt sediment remained, this was called salt panning. Coal was needed to heat the water and Sunderland became prominent in coal mining putting it into competition with Newcastle. Only the poor quality coat was used for salt panning as the better quality coat was traded at the port.
Sunderland was once a world-class ship building town. The last shipyard in Sunderland closed in 1988.
The city is known for its glass making although the Corning Glass Works who had been in the Sunderland for a hundred and fifty years closed early in 2007 and just prior to that Pyrex said that their factory would close by the end of the same year. Since the 7th century glass has been made in Sunderland it now looks that 2007 will be its last production year.
The National Glass Centre gives regular daily tours giving glass-making demonstrations at a cost of £5.00. Or people are free to browse round the shop and display galleries.
As the more traditional industries decline, electronics, paper and chemical manufacturers are taking over and Sunderland image has changed and is now becoming known for these industries.
The city has had major redevelopment and the shipyard area has been transformed in to residential properties and a marina. A large shopping outlet has been erected in Castletown. New blocks of luxury flats are soon to be released. Some of the more affordable areas of the city have been refurbished but further work is still needed.
In 2000 The Bridges Shopping Centre opened with several chain stores trading there with plenty of smaller shops also trading.
After being without a cinema for several years there is now a Cineworld complex in the city.
SK8 City is a fully supervised complex for wheeled sports including boards, BMX’s and roller blades.
Sunderland Empire is the largest theatre in the North East and was reopened in 2004 after major redevelopment had taken place allowing London stage shows to be bought to the North East. The shows have included My Fair Lady, Miss Saigon and Starlight Express. The theatre has recently staged several comedy shows like Little Britain and The League of Gentlemen to name but two. The Royal Ballet also has a season here every year.
Recently more people are visiting Sunderland primarily to watch the football matches but many are beginning to stay the weekend this is helping tourism and economics for the city.
There is in the city a wide selection of bars, restaurants and clubs.
There is always property for rent in Sunderland and average prices are £500pm for a l bed apartment, £750pm for a 2 bed apartment, and £780pm for a 3 bed house.
v Sunderland's Regeneration
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