(?Armed?) Man loitering and intimidating people at Parkhill last night...

While things are generally quiet on Parkhill since the increased Police presence, one very disturbing incident happened last night.

Some of us had to call the police following reports of a man loitering around the courtyard and walkways at the corner of the flats by the junction of South Street and Talbot Road, but by the time the officers arrived, he had gone.

However, he was seen for a good 40 minutes previously; from about 11.30 to a quarter past midnight, standing and looking in the direction of balconies including mine, and holding an unidentified object at least 10" long and 6" wide, wrapped in a dark (blue?) plastic bag, and swinging it in his hand. A woman walking through the nearby footpath passage encountered the man, and it appears he intimidated/was asking her something. About 10 minutes later, the man ascended the stairs at the end of the block and walked for approximately 100 yards along Norwich Row, banging on peoples' doors and loitering on th walkway. About 10 minutes later, he descended the stairs and loitered for some time behind a concrete pillar in front of a front door on Long Henry Row, but that was the last that we saw of him.

From what I could see, the man was white with dark complexion, about 45, medium build, dark medium length hair, sideburns, height about 5ft 7 to 5ft 8 inches, wearing a dark (blue) long sleeved top and dark grey trousers.

Did anyone else see this man? Did he knock on your door, or of any friends you know? Were you walking late at night in the area and threatened by anyone of this description?

If anyone encountered or identified him, it would be a great help to contact the police in confidentiality; a prowler/stalker like this slipping through the net in spite of the improved security in Parkhill is most intimidating for more than a few people living locally...

To the OP - did anybody actually ask this bloke what he was up to?

He could have just been carrying an umbrella of course...

makes me laugh Parkhill is practicly empty and is cleaned every day and has police on the premises, there are other estates in Sheffield that doesnt even get a community police officer. all this just to do them up so that most of the residents can move back in and wreck the place again, not saying all are like that but the majority. Sorry to hear about the prowler not nice.

He could have just been carrying an umbrella of course...

That can't have been the case; it was a small and obviously heavy object in a dark plastic bag; the way in which he was swinging it, it was plainly heavy, it could, for example, have been a hammer/small mallet...

Busybody, its quite true that Parkhill is damn lucky compared to may other places like up Parsons Cross way, in having regular police presence; generally I have felt more secure in my flat than I would in a terraced house in many parts of town; thanks for showing concern about the prowler; we'll be keeping vigilant tonight for any more suspicious activity.

There are also security partols in the part that is being demolished/refurbished, perhaps they have had trouble from attempted break-ins as the workmen have been stripping valuable copper scrap from the section being gutted...

makes me laugh Parkhill is practicly empty and is cleaned every day and has police on the premises, there are other estates in Sheffield that doesnt even get a community police officer. all this just to do them up so that most of the residents can move back in and wreck the place again, not saying all are like that but the majority. Sorry to hear about the prowler not nice.

Many of the residents have moved permanently and won't return. Once the refurbishment is complete many of the flats will be for sale, only a proportion will be for social renting.

Its a hole - it should be demolished.....

Its a hole - it should be demolished.....

Demolish it and you have a huge amount of waste to dispose of, a much greater bill for rebuilding that many homes, and its listed.

Personally I don't think it should be demolished, just tackle the social issues and make sure history doesn't repeat itself.

Demolish it and you have a huge amount of waste to dispose of, a much greater bill for rebuilding that many homes, and its listed.

listed building? This? listed as what....

Far from being the streets in the sky revelation to social housing that it was in the 1960's, Park hill rapidly became a maze of inequity with all the detritus from sheffield council housing estates running the landings... Drug dealing became rife on the flats as the coppers could never sneak up on the dealers, pirate radio stations, prostitutes !! The best thing that can now be done with this so called listed building (seems they are leaving little boxes to put nice cladded fronts on ) is give it some George Bush treatment ?? send in the airstrike Whos up for suggesting the colour scheme for the new cladding on park hill ?? im going for pc multicoloured monstrosity