Sheffield Retail Quarter (ex-"Sevenstone") MEGATHREAD

[AndrewC]

Other half was in Norwich over the weekend and was quite impressed by their Chapelfield shopping mall which has been built by a company called Intu, who apparently have got them springing up all over the place. Makes Meadowhall look dated, was her comment. Why couldn't we interest them in building one here?

 

I'm from Norwich. You can take it from me and your other half that it's a good example of how to do city centre's, retail and all.

[Planner1]

I think the issue is that SCC spent a lot of time and even more money on enabling works, demolition, CPO's etc without having any sort of meaningful development contract in place- one which said if we (SCC) do all this, you (Hammerson) will build Sevenstone. In my mind this is expensive incompetence.

 

Have you seen the Sevenstone development contract?

 

---------- Post added 30-07-2013 at 19:03 ----------

 

You have to pay for it? I shouldve been clearer but i thought it was obvious.

 

Out of everything i wrote in that post that is all you had to comment on?

 

That was the part that I didn't understand what you meant.

Edited July 30, 2013 by Planner1

[go4it]

''Developers like Hammerson build huge developments with many shops and lease them out to retailers.'' They don't in Sheffield.

 

Will John Lewis move into a new store if development is split up into several phases ..?

 

I Doubt you will get anyone to do entire job, i think that decisions been made economicaly..

 

The problem has always been that SCC saw Sevenstone and the Moor as the city centre shopping options. A development like Sevenstone should only be one part of a city centre. Look at Manchester - alongside the Arndale Centre are various shopping areas. Leeds has the Headrow, Briggate and now Trinity.

[dvp82]

Hammerson are never going to build the sevenstone development.

[dosxuk]

I'm from Norwich. You can take it from me and your other half that it's a good example of how to do city centre's, retail and all.

 

Only took about 11 years to get planning permission, built and opened too.

 

But then again, for people in Norfolk, if you don't go down the city, where do you go? The next nearest shopping destination is either Lakeside, London or Cambridge (at a push). I certainly don't remember people saying how wonderful the parking is in Norwich.

[Penistone999]

 

However, in terms of transport, what do you think that Meadowhall has got that the city centre hasn't?

 

FREE parking ,no silly one way systems, no bus gates , easy access , need i go on .

 

---------- Post added 30-07-2013 at 22:17 ----------

 

 

Re-opening pedestrianised areas to traffic is counter-intuitive and isn't going to happen.

 

Not under this Anti car council it wont even though it makes perfect sense to do so .

[Planner1]

Not under this Anti car council it wont even though it makes perfect sense to do so .

It might make perfect sense to petrolhead dinosaurs like you, but not to anyone else.

 

Do they let you drive down the mall at your beloved Meadowhall?

[andygardener]

Have you seen the Sevenstone development contract?

 

We don't need to. The council did the CPO's, boarded up the shops and got everything tee'd up. Hammerson did not then build Sevenstone.

 

So we know the contract the council drew up was inadequate to ensure that the council doing their bit would result in Hammerson doing their bit.

 

Now the contract is null and void if it's such a fine contract that doesn't bring shame on the incompetent council fools that negotiated it maybe you can publish it so we can all bask in it's glory?

 

But you won't do that. You'll refuse to make it public and try to criticise anyone who suggests the council got it wrong because they haven't seen the document you will refuse to publish despite the net result being plain for all to see.

 

And you wonder why the council are loathed in this city.

[WallBuilder]

I doubt if many or any of us have ever seen a building contract between a developer and a council so I for one would never like to comment on whether the one between Sheffield city council and Hammerson was well worded and water tight or not. certainly the new market which was to have a block of apartments over it never materialised the developer simply pulled out because of the financial crisis. and I assume there was a contract in place So what now I wonder, hopefully there will be an informed update from the council before the end of this year, yes don't scream planning developments can take years although this one should be easier as the footprint is known and any hurdles either known about or dealt with.

[AndrewC]

Only took about 11 years to get planning permission, built and opened too.

 

Swift!

 

But then again, for people in Norfolk, if you don't go down the city, where do you go? The next nearest shopping destination is either Lakeside, London or Cambridge (at a push).

 

An interesting point; There are some 800,000 people in Norfolk and a few of the places just over the borders to whom Norwich is the centre. But that shouldn't belittle how Norwich still stays pretty near the top of the game in National terms. It punches well above its weight and it's done so by pretty much allowing it's retail offering to grow organically.

 

 

I certainly don't remember people saying how wonderful the parking is in Norwich.

 

You pay for it and interestingly, whenever I'm back home and I'm driven in by family, it's not even a subject for discussion! No free-parking centre like Meadowhall you may say - well, no, but plenty of free parking in the close by peripheral residential streets. But people just don't bother. It doesn't really become a 'thing'. The car parks are so central, numerous and reasonably priced that people just park there. The city centre is worth it. I'm fairly pro-Sheffield Centre, but I do worry the same cannot be said of it.

 

Interestingly, some 6-7 well used park + rides for everyone who comes from around the city, in particular Yarmouth/Dereham. Takes about 5-6 minutes on the bus in to town.