As I have said previously, We do not need to be competing with the masses, rather, we need to offer enough to keep the people in Sheffield, and south Yorkshire pleased. Pleased enough to keep them from travel to cities such as Manchester and Leeds for shopping. Imagine a city centre with the completed Sevenstone's and Moor and the Independent businesses of Division St, the traditional feel of Fargate up to Tudor Square and the lively atmosphere of High street. That is what I would call my 'ideal' shopping area, bubbly, cultural and lively. Sheffield can easily become this in the next 5 years.
Meadowhall does have its good's such as free parking, indoor and fairly clean atmosphere. However, it would also has its bad's such as being on one end of the city, sometimes too hot and cramped and boring. Similarly, the city centre also has its Good's and Bad's. Someone who loves Meadowhall type of shopping would certainly dislike Sheffield city centre, similarly people who like City Centre style shopping will dislike Meadowhall. The solution is to have a balance between both shopping areas, so people get whatever they want in their preferred environment. Although Sheffield city centre is currently lagging behind abit, these schemes would do enough to make us par with Meadowhall. (don't forget, the point of the city centre is not to have a shopping environment similar to the out-of-town shopping centre, rather different and unique which makes it special)
I agree with the concept that Retail is not all that should be focused on in the city centre. Personally, if I was an influencing figure for Hammerson, I would urge them to keep a tower bloc for accommodation and/or office space. However, I acknowledge that Retail is a core sector which the city centre is lacking in, therefore a scheme solely for that purpose is also understandable. Hopefully, it would be an anchor for further developments.