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The IKEA in Sheffield thread


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Cheap way for scc to pay for road upkeep i suppose, tho i did think thats what business rates were for, silly me, forgot, council need those for their pet projects!!

The money for road maintenance comes from central government grant.

 

The money Ikea are conditioned to provide will be to pay the commuted sum for the additional highway infrastructure which will be required for the development to happen. It will not be a payment towards maintaining what is already there.

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It's interesting that Sheffield Council will always adopt a dog-in-the-manger attitude over new retail development, stopping it cold in case it hurts their parking scam in the city centre, and their council tax income from city-centre businesses. This is the very reason that Mrs Thatcher took planning away from them in the matter of derelict land many years ago and created the (I think) Don Valley Development Corporation, which, of course gave permission for Meadowhell, which has been of tremendous benefit to the area, in terms of jobs and shopping opportunities (if you are of a mind to do that: I confess I'm no shopper, but I don't object to other people getting their jollies.

 

However, I will say that shopping in Meadowhell is way more pleasant than in Fargate. Firstly, getting there is much quicker and easier. Parking is free, and let's face it: shopping with a car to dump your purchases in periodically and then sally forth again unencumbered with heavy bags is the only civilised way to do it. You can dump your stuf, and then and eat, or go to a film, or whatever without dragging heavy bags with you.

 

You can't do ANY of that in Fargate.

 

And of course, in Fargate you have to run the gamut of student protesters, political agitators, charity muggers (chuggers) and dog-on-a-rope beggars, not to mention incompetent musicians soliciting money. Even if Meadowhell charged for parking (which they won't, not having a death wish) it would be worth it just to avoid all those scum.

 

Sheffield Council refused point-blank to change the useage of land in the Meadowhell area to retail, saying it was reserved for Industry - despite the fact that it was obvious to even a moronic amoeba that Industry was not going to come back to use it - the world having moved on, and steelmaking was being done in Malaysia by guys on £25 a week, rather than in guys in Sheffield for £500 a week. Which firms' steel is going to be better value, if you are a steel user - like a car plant? Yep. Malaysian. Or Indian.

 

It wasn't Mrs T that killed th steel industry in Sheffield, it was the large, cheap bulk-ore-carrier, and the bulk-steel carrying ships that made it much cheaper to make steel in a lowcost place like India - and land it here for way under half the price of British-procuded steel.

 

That industry was NEVER coming back - but Sheffield Council shut its eyes, and insisted that the land couldn't be used for retail. So, the decision was, (rightly) taken away from them. Something similar needs to be done about the Ikea situation.

 

Ikea will NEVER site a store in a city location with limited car access or parking. It would be commercial suicide. People DRIVE to Ikea, and take the stuff they buy away in their cars. They suffer the hell that is the Ikea shopping experience (you have to trail round the whole bleeding place unless you are devious enough to find a shortcut to the exit) because THEY DON'T HAVE TO WAIT FOR STUFF TO BE DELIVERED DAYS LATER - when they are out at work anyway. The can get it NOW - and take it home in the car.

 

Carrying most Ikea stuff home by hand on the tram is not possible, so pedectrian shoppers don't make up much of the Ikea customer crowd.

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The money for road maintenance comes from central government grant.

 

The money Ikea are conditioned to provide will be to pay the commuted sum for the additional highway infrastructure which will be required for the development to happen. It will not be a payment towards maintaining what is already there.

 

And again in plain English please?

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It's interesting that Sheffield Council will always adopt a dog-in-the-manger attitude over new retail development,

If that is the case, why is the Ikea development recommended for approval?

 

Ikea will NEVER site a store in a city location with limited car access or parking.

No-one has asked them to site this one in the city centre, so your point is?

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