Boho X tower reviewed due to coronavirus

The office block (left) would be accompanied by two residential towers

Plans for a 260ft (80m) tall office block in Middlesbrough are "under review" in the wake of coronavirus.

Work on the Boho X tower at Middlehaven was set to start this summer but its construction is being put back amid a fresh assessment of the plan.

The £30m plan was due to be completed in 2022 but its design is being reviewed due to changing demand for office spaces following the pandemic.

Middlesbrough Mayor Andy Preston said it could see funds invested elsewhere.

It comes as 50 of the UK's biggest employers told the BBC they have no plans to return all staff to the office full-time in the near future.

Helipad suggested

The skyscraper would have been the tallest office between Leeds and Glasgow.

Mr Preston said there could be potential to spend less money and "free up some capital", according to Local Democracy Reporting Service.

"We are undoubtedly putting up a magnificent building - and I am still certain there will be demand for offices like this in Middlesbrough and across the world," he said.

"But with covid there is some uncertainty about what kind of offices and how much demand there is so we are reviewing the design of the building."

It had been suggested a helipad could go on top of the 19-storey building.

The independent mayor said he would release the review's findings in the coming weeks.

"We need to keep our economy going in Middlesbrough so every new project that we can kick off that creates construction jobs, energy and dynamism in the heart of town is really valuable," he told the latest executive council meeting.

Blueprints for the tower were due to go the council's planning committee in June.

The Boho X building would be accompanied by two residential towers close to the site of the farm that originally marked Middlesbrough.

The tower would command views across Middlesbrough and Teesside