Vistry Partnerships is redeveloping the site for the city council, building 265 new homes on the old council offices site.
The 1960s building, on Burdon Road, was vacated by Sunderland City Council earlier this year, after it moved to the new City Hall at Riverside Sunderland.
Specialist contractor MGL Demolition has now started to dismantle the unwanted building.
Initial works – already complete – included stripping out the interior, taking out the windows and removing any asbestos containing materials.
The development is part of a wider programme of regeneration in the city centre that seeks to double the number of people living and working in the area.
Councillor Graeme Miller, leader of Sunderland City Council, said: “Councils have significantly changed the way they operate and interact with residents and partner organisations, and buildings like the Civic Centre - that were designed for working in a bygone era – can eventually become a barrier to progress.
“We were determined, when we made the decision to move out of the Civic, to twin-track the development of our new building with a process to ensure the site on Burdon Road would be quickly regenerated and we are delighted that – just weeks after officially opening City Hall – we are seeing the way paved for development to quickly proceed.”
The Vistry Partnerships regeneration scheme plans to recreate Saint George’s Square, which was bomb damaged during the Second World War and lost to redevelopment in the 1960s.
Properties will be sold under Vistry’s Linden Homes brand.
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