What is so good about Sheffield City Centre?

[paula4sheff 10]

This might be true, but it's always the case on forums. It's either one extreme or the other. I've only lived here two years and absolutely love it. However, i think it's silly and blinkered to not accept that Sheffield city centre could - and SHOULD - be a lot more vibrant and engaging if it had better local leadership.

 

It has a huge catchment area, but never really pulls people in. A wonderful resource like South Quay is wasted and is a ghost town - look at what Leeds did to their canalside areas, by way of contrast. Compare the Xmas markets in Leeds or Manchester to those in Sheffield - it's almost embarassing by way of contrast, and there is no palpable reason why it should be so. Sheffield is the home of football, yet what does the city do to capitalise on such a unique and globally significant point of difference? Absolutely nothing.

 

I was disappointed to walk down the Moor last week to check out the new Gap store, only to discover that the new Gap in what is meant to be Sheffield's premier shopping street is in fact a Gap surplus store. Just let that sink in for a moment - Sheffield shoppers are fit only for the crap that Gap can't sell elsewhere in the north.

 

Sheffield is a great place let down by its civic leaders. It could be so much greater. That isn't being disloyal to the city; it's a plea to pull its socks up.

 

Absolutely. Couldn't agree more. The city needs to do better- arguing otherwise is madness. The facy we are so high up on the list of places with empty retail units should be an alrm call. All the excuses can be reeled out and discussed- fact of the matter remains that it's not in a good place at yhe moment. Sheffield is struggling- and part of that is dreadful leadership, and chronic abudance of dim witted and short sighted decision making. The football poiny is a classi example- that Sheffield makes nothing of it, and can't even muater up even the most basic of museums is ludicrous.

[Guest makapaka]

Sheffield is hindered by the decisions that put virtually everything on hold whilst the Sevenstones development was dithered over for a decade. The pre recession boom in retail passed the city centre by, yet what remained in limbo was still hit by the following recession and has never really recovered.

 

The only highlight of the last few years in the city centre is the redevelopment of the Moor, and as far as I know that has nothing to do with the council as it's all Scottish Widows cash driving it.

 

That’s how most development takes place though - where are the council going to get the money from to do any significant development.

[kaytie 11]

I too was gutted to discover all Gap had to offer was ..... let's say rubbish! Haven't purchased there and won't be doing so. The vast majority of my spending is online these days as I loathe pushyshovy bratscreamy meadowhell.

[the_bloke 17]

That’s how most development takes place though - where are the council going to get the money from to do any significant development.

 

It's well discussed on this forum, but they were certainly offering to put up £400m to take over the scheme after Hammerson gave up with it. So either they have the money for something like that, or they don't and were talking rubbish.

 

Moot point anyway, Sevenstones is long dead.

[Guest makapaka]

It's well discussed on this forum, but they were certainly offering to put up £400m to take over the scheme after Hammerson gave up with it. So either they have the money for something like that, or they don't and were talking rubbish.

 

Moot point anyway, Sevenstones is long dead.

 

Or they were sourcing another developer- do you think the council would spend £400m on a speculative development?

[Martin C 81]

pushyshovy bratscreamy meadowhell.

 

Perfect description of Murderhell. Have had the misfortune to find myself there a couple of times but never spent any money in the hell hole. Ei

[Guest makapaka]

Perfect description of Murderhell. Have had the misfortune to find myself there a couple of times but never spent any money in the hell hole. Ei

 

It’s really not a hell hole it’s just a shopping centre.

[Padders 2,863]

It’s really not a hell hole it’s just a shopping centre.

 

Lots of people on here hate Meadowhall, I quite like it, warm, dry, easy parking, much better than town shopping, that really is hell.

[bendix 10]

The canal side in Sheffield is unfortunately quite disconnected from the city centre.

 

There is of course a regular Gap and Gap children at meadowhall, I expect that Gap think it's close enough for people to travel to, and they're quite right.

 

.

 

There is not a regular Gap at Meadowhall.

 

---------- Post added 18-07-2018 at 09:58 ----------

 

Just wondered if you've been down South Quay recently? Youll usually find a big crowd down at the Dorthy Pax, tunes being played and wood-fired pizza oven outside.

 

I'll admit it is still cut off a little from the town centre though it's only a short walk from the Tap. My mate from Barnsley gets the train in, we do the tap, then the pax, back to the tap and train back.

 

Now we have the IRR extension that horrible dual carriageway past the metropolitan can finally be ripped out and replaced with something a bit more people friendly to link the quay back into the city

 

Yes. I work on South Quay so I am down here everyday. The Pax is ok, but only on a Friday night, and that is mostly workers from the area. They pizza is only on every Friday or every other Friday.

 

My point is simple. It is a lovely picturesque area, full of ready made retail and entertainment venues in the form of those arches. And what is there? A greasy spoon cafe, an office for the canal, and Dorothy Pax, which looks like a cafe from some tedious market town masquerading as a bar in the evening.

 

Now look at the same area in Leeds - boutiques, art galleries, craft beer bars, coffee shops - it's a real vibrant area.

 

I don't buy the ' it's a long way from town line'. It's no further from Fargate than the Leeds dockland area is from, say, Briggate in Leeds.

[Cyclone 10]

You're correct, I guess the one that was there closed.

 

Sticking with the theme about Gap though and how "Just let that sink in for a moment - Sheffield shoppers are fit only for the crap that Gap can't sell elsewhere in the north."

 

Looking at the Gap store locator, all the stores around here, near Leeds, near Manchester, towards Derby and at Doncaster are ALL Gap outlets.

You have to go as far as Birmingham (2nd largest city in the country) to find a full fledged Gap. So I don't particularly feel like we've been snubbed by Gap, nor do I really care.

[the_bloke 17]

Or they were sourcing another developer- do you think the council would spend £400m on a speculative development?

 

Oh sorry, I've summoned you by mentioning the precious council who need you to defend them on the forum. The council made big announcements about them taking it back in house, and were even going to take out a £50m loan to purchase the properties to demolish.

 

https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/news/sheffield-council-takes-troubled-shopping-development-into-its-own-hands-1-6663514

 

Next month the council’s Cabinet will finalise structuring the property deal, which could include finding investors or funding the scheme directly.

 

So they were prepared to fund it all themselves. I'm glad they didn't. I stand by what I said, the total failure of Sevenstones is what has caused the city centre to be left behind by other large cities and it's the fault of the council that it happened. It was their project. They were managing it. They failed.

[bendix 10]

You're correct, I guess the one that was there closed.

 

Sticking with the theme about Gap though and how "Just let that sink in for a moment - Sheffield shoppers are fit only for the crap that Gap can't sell elsewhere in the north."

 

Looking at the Gap store locator, all the stores around here, near Leeds, near Manchester, towards Derby and at Doncaster are ALL Gap outlets.

You have to go as far as Birmingham (2nd largest city in the country) to find a full fledged Gap. So I don't particularly feel like we've been snubbed by Gap, nor do I really care.

 

 

I'm sorry - and I don't want to labour the point and focus on Gap, because it was purely illustrative of a wider general point - but that simply isn't the case.

 

There are mainstream Gap stores in St Ann Square in the heart of Manchester (I was there last week) and a larger one in Trafford Centre. There are also outlet stores in crappier places like Stockport and an outlet mall in Salford Quays.

 

I have also bought from Gap in York recently, and I believe there is a regular store in Harrogate also.

 

So there you have it. The premier walking street in Sheffield's new much vaunted Retail Quarter is akin to Stockport and a Salford outlet mall.