What Would You Like To See Change In Our City?

[alchresearch 214]

Sheffield is the North’s most underrated destination and a perfect city break

https://inews.co.uk/inews-lifestyle/travel/sheffield-regeneration-kelham-island-craft-beer-abbeydale-road-cutlery-works/

 

Is Sheffield Britain's most underrated city break destination?

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/united-kingdom/england/yorkshire/sheffield/articles/Is-Sheffield-Britains-most-underrated-city-break-destination/

[Wazzock 10]

4 hours ago, busdriver1 said:

Dont put words into my mouth. I dont doubt that they were a success.  What I am saying is that they alone do not represent a MAJOR attraction.

I have seen what Sheffield has. I for one do not delude myself, it has nothing, hence no tourists. id yourself all you want but the tourist industry is very competitive and operators are always on the lookout for something different. The entire tourist industry does not rate sheffield so the entire tourist industry does not run trips there. Work it out.

Actually, DocFest is a major international attraction drawing people from all over the world

[bluecanary 13]

3 hours ago, stifflersmom said:

In the absence of traditional tourist attractions Sheffield markets itself as a creative and outdoor city. Tramlines, Cliffhanger, Docfest and Off the Shelf attract thousands into the city ( national and international visitors, high profile attendees), for a period of time rather than just a day visit. That boosts the local economy significantly.  It is pointless trying to compete with Leeds or Manchester, a different approach is needed, and Sheffield is doing this.

Don't forget sporting events - we do have some olympic class facilities in Sheffield, including EIS and the pools at Ponds Forge.

 

A couple of weeks ago, Ponds Forge hosted the World Underwater Hockey championships (a more obscure one, I know), but I did cringe on the inside watching the groups of young competitors in their international team gear leaving Ponds Forge and wandering uphill towards the mess that is Fitzalan Square and thereabouts. Not exactly an area to make a  great impression on international visitos, is it?

[feargal 21]

6 hours ago, bluecanary said:

Don't forget sporting events - we do have some olympic class facilities in Sheffield, including EIS and the pools at Ponds Forge.

I wish these events were better publicised. We keep saying we'll have a family trip out, only to miss it, or see the one single billboard advert just as the event finishes. 

[Mister M 1,608]

On 04/09/2019 at 12:37, makapaka said:

It’s tiresome reading posts judging an entire city based on whether or not it’s got a Karen Millen in the city centre.

 

 

I agree 100% with this. 

I think it's a case of 'the grass is always greener'. I have lived in Leeds for 5 years and Manchester for 2 years; and whilst those cities have their advantages, they also have their downsides. Many of these top end shops, were always empty when I walked past, simply because so few people could afford to shop in them. 

I moved to Sheffield in 1991 when Sheffield really was 'down on its uppers' and was pretty grim. In the last 15 - 20 years things have started to improve with the appearance of the city. Peace Gardens, Winter Gardens, Tudor Square have all undergone a makeover and look much better for it.

My own perception is that The Moor has seen an increase in footfall in the last year. 

I much prefer the new market rather than the old one. The old one, although bigger, was grotty, smelly and run down. I know people have fond memories of being dragged round the stalls by their parents, but times move on.

I agree with the poster who said that the major thing he'd like to see change in Sheffield is the mindset of some people who live here.

Perhaps more art spaces so that local people can develop their talents would be one suggestion; another might be a concerted effort to publicise what the city does have to offer. I've spoken to a few people recently who are avid gamers who didn't even know that Sheffield hosts the Retro Games Museum on Angel Street!

Edited September 5, 2019 by Mister M

[Guest makapaka]

4 hours ago, Mister M said:

I agree 100% with this. 

I think it's a case of 'the grass is always greener'. I have lived in Leeds for 5 years and Manchester for 2 years; and whilst those cities have their advantages, they also have their downsides. Many of these top end shops, were always empty when I walked past, simply because so few people could afford to shop in them. 

I moved to Sheffield in 1991 when Sheffield really was 'down on its uppers' and was pretty grim. In the last 15 - 20 years things have started to improve with the appearance of the city. Peace Gardens, Winter Gardens, Tudor Square have all undergone a makeover and look much better for it.

My own perception is that The Moor has seen an increase in footfall in the last year. 

I much prefer the new market rather than the old one. The old one, although bigger, was grotty, smelly and run down. I know people have fond memories of being dragged round the stalls by their parents, but times move on.

I agree with the poster who said that the major thing he'd like to see change in Sheffield is the mindset of some people who live here.

Perhaps more art spaces so that local people can develop their talents would be one suggestion; another might be a concerted effort to publicise what the city does have to offer. I've spoken to a few people recently who are avid gamers who didn't even know that Sheffield hosts the Retro Games Museum on Angel Street!

I always think of the walk from Manchester Piccadilly train station into the centre on the way to all these great shops.

 

scores of homeless people throughout the day and night lining the route - a tragedy.

 

But people don’t see it -  because Harvey Nichols is ahead - do me a favour.

 

sheffield has loads of great things going for it - we don’t need a shopping brand to make us “better”.

 

 

[Bargepole23 337]

7 hours ago, makapaka said:

I always think of the walk from Manchester Piccadilly train station into the centre on the way to all these great shops.

 

scores of homeless people throughout the day and night lining the route - a tragedy.

 

But people don’t see it -  because Harvey Nichols is ahead - do me a favour.

 

sheffield has loads of great things going for it - we don’t need a shopping brand to make us “better”.

 

 

This.

Leeds has a nice centre, quite familiar with it. Manchester, dreadful.

[feargal 21]

1 hour ago, Bargepole23 said:

This.

Leeds has a nice centre, quite familiar with it. Manchester, dreadful.

My other half works in Leeds, and much prefers Sheffield City centre, mainly because there's hardly any public open/green space in Leeds, they are missing a Devonshire green, tudor square or Winter Gardens where people can take a breath without being confronted with another retail opportunity. 

[Guest makapaka]

29 minutes ago, feargal said:

My other half works in Leeds, and much prefers Sheffield City centre, mainly because there's hardly any public open/green space in Leeds, they are missing a Devonshire green, tudor square or Winter Gardens where people can take a breath without being confronted with another retail opportunity. 

This is the thing - Sheffield isn’t Leeds, Leeds isn’t Sheffield.

[Guest makapaka]

On 04/09/2019 at 05:47, DerbyTup said:

I walked down Pinstone Street the other day.  Just about every other shop there is closed down/boarded up.  This is not some little backwater on the fringes of the city centre, it is right there, in the heart of the city, opposite the splendid Peace gardens and Winter gardens and the lovely development they've done in that area.  What an absolute shame to see this.  One of the shops has re-opened as a....cafe.  That's about the only type of business that seems sustainable in Sheffield city centre,  food and drink, or nail-bars and charity shops.  It's a far cry from the days when I used to buy my brogues from Lennards.

 

I then walked along Charles street and took a left on Cambridge street, down through the new shopping centre part, passing "Grosvenor House".  Construction is still going on there obviously but I could see the HSBC sign illuminated inside Grosvenor House.  HSBC eh?  I wondered where they had gone to!  I opened a business account with them because they had a little sub-branch in our village and I'd seen their adverts about being a world-class bank every time I got on a plane.   Then they started closing several branches locally and they were no longer convenient and neither have I found them very business-friendly to bank with either.  Never mind.  I know now where I might find a branch, when this new shopping centre opens.  Although it's not certain they will have a counter service, obviously.  It's more likely it's staff with clipboards, showing you how to use the machines.  😯

 

I gazed in through the windows at this huge retail building.  A sign read, "retail units to let from 2,000 sq ft to 22,000 sq ft".  There was no sign of retail life yet.  I pondered..."what type of businesses will come here?"  Will we see this place fill up with the likes of Harvey Nicholls, Selfridge's, Karen Millen, Mulberry, Louis Vitton, etc.?  Or will it be more, "H&M", "Primark", "WH Smith", "Boots the Chemist", "Watch repairs", etc.?  I think I know the answer, but I will wait to be pleasantly surprised maybe?

 

You ask "what" would I like to see change in our city?  This.  I'd like to see the city attract some top end retailers to set up here.  Why?  Well not because I'm wanting to buy something from them every day of the week, but it's wonderful to have such quality and variety on offer.  It's a reason to come into the city centre, even if one is only window-shopping.

 

It's one of the reasons we go to Manchester or Leeds.  And I'm sorry if these comparisons are "tiresome" but that's probably because folks are fed up of hearing about it because nothing gets done about it.  The new Victoria shopping centre in Leeds - it's beautiful.   And wonderfully restored Victorian arcades - the likes of which Sheffield got rid of years ago.  It's just a lovely place to wander around.  And so we go there, we may not buy a Mulberry handbag every week (although we did buy one on a recent visit) but we'll have lunch there and find some reason to empty money from our purse and wallet which is boosting their local economy.  

 

The sad fact is, there is really no need to go into Sheffield City centre to shop.  There's only one shop that's worth going in, and that's John Lewis.  And that place is falling down and in desperate need of repair.  I worked there in the 1970's, my first job on leaving school.  It was a flagship store for Sheffield back then, with it's wonderfully artistic window displays and spic and span interior design.  It saddens me to see it like it is - but that's Sheffield for you.  Here's what the John Lewis in Leeds looks like...

 

 

And here's a Victorian arcade in Leeds...

 

 

I would love to see this in Sheffield.  I think it's beautiful and a reason to come into the city centre.

 

Some of us are "tiresome" with our comparisons with neighbouring cities because we want the best for Sheffield.  But seemingly, Sheffield does not want the best for itself or us?  Or simply hasn't got a clue how to go about getting it?  

 

Regrettably, I don't see this changing much in the near future.  It will take a generation of old Sheffielder's to die out and younger people with brighter ideas and ambition, to take over - and that is going to take time. 

 

(At least we've got one good football team that is putting the city on the map at last!😉)

 

Here are the plans for some of the buildings you walked past 

 

https://www.thestar.co.uk/business/this-is-when-new-look-shopping-parades-in-sheffield-city-centre-will-open-493759?amp_js_v=a2&amp_gsa=1&amp&usqp=mq331AQEKAFwAQ==#ampshare=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thestar.co.uk%2Fbusiness%2Fthis-is-when-new-look-shopping-parades-in-sheffield-city-centre-will-open-493759_js_v%3Da2%26_gsa%3D1%26%26usqp%3Dmq331AQEKAFwAQ%3D%3D

[Bargepole23 337]

3 hours ago, makapaka said:

Here are the plans for some of the buildings you walked past 

 

https://www.thestar.co.uk/business/this-is-when-new-look-shopping-parades-in-sheffield-city-centre-will-open-493759?amp_js_v=a2&amp_gsa=1&amp&usqp=mq331AQEKAFwAQ==#ampshare=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thestar.co.uk%2Fbusiness%2Fthis-is-when-new-look-shopping-parades-in-sheffield-city-centre-will-open-493759_js_v%3Da2%26_gsa%3D1%26%26usqp%3Dmq331AQEKAFwAQ%3D%3D

I think you are missing the key point, which was to inform others about the purchase of a Mulberry bag.

[catmiss 12]

I’m glad there’s obviously loads of northerners who could support an array of designer shops or even have the desire/time to window shop. Most people have to focus on making their money stretch to the basics. Hope a Mulberry bag is big enough to hold the wedge needed