STACK Leisure has shelved plans for new food, drink and entertainment venues in Durham and Whitley Bay, citing development costs, planning delays and wider pressures on the hospitality industry.

The Newcastle-born operator said it had decided to withdraw from both projects and concentrate its resources on developments elsewhere. It remains committed to proposed venues in Bishop Auckland, Northampton, Manchester, Leeds and Sheffield.

STACK Durham was planned for the former Marks & Spencer store on Silver Street, where the scheme secured planning approval in April 2023. In Whitley Bay, the company proposed converting the former Empress Ballroom at Spanish City. Plans for a roof terrace there were approved in September 2023.

STACK chief executive Neill Winch said unforeseen development costs, slow planning and legal processes and infrastructure requirements had contributed to the decision.

“When these sites were originally added to our development pipeline, our ambition was to deliver three to four new venues per year but in reality two sites a year is a more realistic number,” he said.

“We do not want to continue holding back regeneration and investment while projects move further and further down our timeline so have had to make this very difficult decision.”

Winch said STACK would step aside so that other operators could come forward at both sites, and that the decision did not reflect the performance of its existing venues.

In Review North's September feature on STACK's national expansion, Durham still had no published opening date and the company's latest announcements concerning Whitley Bay dated from 2023.

The company's remaining development plans include the former Hatch site on Manchester's Oxford Road, Leeds Kirkgate Market and Arundel Gate in Sheffield. STACK has also confirmed that its venue in Wigan's former Debenhams store will open in November.