New Retail Quarter - Sevenstone

[dinp]

Originally Posted by adsheff

The proposed site for the new John Lewis is a car park at the minute, and last I looked there was a billboard outside it advertising some new trendy flats about to be built there. Anyone know what's gannin on?

That billboard is out of date as far as I know and needs to be taken down.

[thelynxeffect]

yep. the permission has lapsed years ago. imagine how shit that would have been if they had built that though right there. No more john lewis. oh for the hindsight.

[Superfly]

Hi everyone, time for my first post!

The one thing that concerns me most about this is the retention of stuff along Division St. and Charter Row, which will not make people coming down from that end of town very aware that a flagship J Lewis store is 50m to their left or right, it's only till they get to Pinstone that they'll realise and double back, even if, and sure they will have signposts.

Plus, it means Telephone House stays, and really that should go, cos imho it's 2nd worst behind the Grossvenor of tower design in the city. A new office/retail would suffice, something in keeping with the 'high-rise alley SCC want to create.

In addition, how ACE would a 150m of Simpson/Beetham resi-hotel at Charter Square be? We gain/retain a luxury hotel, get wicked living space and a REAL icon, visible from everywhere screaming 'this is the centre of Sheffield.'
The view down Charter Row from Eccy Rd. would be fantastic!

Wickid site by the way!

[Bladerunner]

Telephone House should certainly stay. Nowt wrong with it, and it's a decent height.

I even think the Grosvenor could stay, if it had a decent reclad, and two or three 'fake' stories were added (hiding high fencing for a tennis court, for example).

[rotherowl]

Telephone House doesn't look that bad but the car park is in serious need of recladding if it is to be in keeping with all the other buildings that will be getting constructed in the coming years in this area.
The Grosvenor will be torn down when construction of the NRQ gets under way as its footprint and usage will be changed. Hammerson said that the height of the apartment tower that should replace the Grosvenor is limited by conservation area guidelines over heights near to the city hall which seems daft as St. pauls tower must exceed any height guidelines concerning buildings near to the town hall.

[muddycoffee]

Originally Posted by Bladerunner

Telephone House should certainly stay. Nowt wrong with it, and it's a decent height.

I even think the Grosvenor could stay, if it had a decent reclad, and two or three 'fake' stories were added (hiding high fencing for a tennis court, for example).

Didn't the grosvenor have a reclad about 10 years ago?

Isn't the problem with the building that the whole block contains units which are the wrong size for modern retail, with steps on many of the units where wheelchair access should now be by law. I am sure you could patch up the block and spend millions of pounds putting ramps everywhere but it would look like a right botch job. Even the Casbah doesn't have a lift to its basement bar ( which would mean it would never get a licence if it was a new venue ) and there are terrible problems with the drains flooding the floor, which have existed for years. If this is typical of the building then it probably has knackered infrastructure buried in it's concrete foundations and structure.
If it was built on the cheap in the 60s, and there's a chance that a well built, modern, better designed block can be built in its place then I think that is the much better option.

Originally Posted by rotherowl

Telephone House doesn't look that bad but the car park is in serious need of recladding if it is to be in keeping with all the other buildings that will be getting constructed in the coming years in this area.

Most of the multi story car parks of that era are the same, with lumps of concrete fallen of and rusty metal showing. Although this car park and the Eyre street one I have always found convenient and well situated for nipping into town.

[Superfly]

I wouldn'd suggest anything of less height than Telephone House to replace it, just to me it's shape is all wrong for the footprint it consumes, too long and thin, its a bit dark and imposing, a bit too brutal for my liking, and the base of it looks positively derelict, BT sign missing and all, and I reckon this'll all be highlighted with shiny new buildings on either side.

A refurb would dilute this somewhat, but I thought that it had one only a few years ago anyway. The Grosvenor looks exactly the same as it did in the old photo thread, so it's refub was minimal if it did have one.

lookin at the plans I thought the resi tower was just out of or on the edge of the conservation zone, 150m would be excessive, but certainly something 100m+ should be considered, you can't even see the town hall from round there anyway.

[rotherowl]

Hammersons planning application indicates a residential tower between 12 to 15 floors located above 4 to 5 floors of commercial space depending on market conditions and a height upto 75 m. To me it would make sense to include a hotel in the plans for this building as a hotel is getting demolished to make way for it. Manchester is doing it with the incredible Beetham tower so why can't Hammerson.

[Superfly]

Right On Rotherowl!

It stands to reason since we are the only major English City without something by Ian Simpson even floating about.

[unners]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/s...re/4945340.stm

http://www.sheffield.gov.uk/index.asp?pgid=1912

[Alfie]

Am I the only one worried about the apparent lack of any planning application yet submitted by the Fire Brigade for their new HQ supposedly to be built off Eyre Street?? If this huge project is ever to get done, John Lewis needs to be demolished which means the new John Lewis needs to be built which means the Fire HQ needs to be demolished which means the new fire HQ needs to be built.......... 2015, anyone?

[adsheff]

Personally, I think it would be more beneficial to Sheffield centre to get the New Burgess Street under construction before John Lewis. This is the main bulk of high quality retail units which is the thing that Sheffield lacks. John Lewis is already there, and whilst it isn't the prettiest of buildings its perfectly functional and doesn't look too bad at all compared to Mingdom building. The only great loss would be Mingdom nightclub, which probably won't be around much longer anyway....

[rotherowl]

I can't understand why they are probably going to wait 2 more years before they start building the car park element of the scheme, when all that stands on its site are derelict buildings and some 2nd hand car dealers.

[Alfie]

Originally Posted by adsheff

Personally, I think it would be more beneficial to Sheffield centre to get the New Burgess Street under construction before John Lewis. This is the main bulk of high quality retail units which is the thing that Sheffield lacks. John Lewis is already there, and whilst it isn't the prettiest of buildings its perfectly functional and doesn't look too bad at all compared to Mingdom building. The only great loss would be Mingdom nightclub, which probably won't be around much longer anyway....

I agree it would be good but New Burgess Street appears to be aligned right over where John Lewis is now so that would mean no John Lewis for several years which would be pretty fatal to sheffield's "retail offer"! This is my point really, it's all got to follow a certain sequence, its quite a tricky project.

[adsheff]

Alas, Sheffield isn't in Dubai or Shanghai. If it were it'd be half built by now, 20000 people would have had their homes bulldozed and 80 people would have perished. Damn this beaurocracy. I hear compulsory acquistition orders can take up to two years...

[Bladerunner]

Originally Posted by Alfie

I agree it would be good but New Burgess Street appears to be aligned right over where John Lewis is now so that would mean no John Lewis for several years which would be pretty fatal to sheffield's "retail offer"! This is my point really, it's all got to follow a certain sequence, its quite a tricky project.

This is a very good point. If the area is turned into a building site for five years, people will get in the habit of going elsewhere. It needs to be carefully staged.

[hella good]

if they build phase 1 first there will be no problem because john lewis can move into the new building, then they can start on phase 2..by demolishing john lewis.

[dinp]

Originally Posted by Bladerunner

This is a very good point. If the area is turned into a building site for five years, people will get in the habit of going elsewhere. It needs to be carefully staged.

The rail station has been a building site for at least two years and it hasn't stopped people using it. However, it is true to say that businesses may suffer in the short term, because the Howard pub did whilst they repaved Howard Street.

[Starslight]

Originally Posted by dinp

The rail station has been a building site for at least two years and it hasn't stopped people using it. However, it is true to say that businesses may suffer in the short term, because the Howard pub did whilst they repaved Howard Street.

The rail station is not really a fair comparison. If your using rail its usually because there is no alternative (like you don't own a car) or it's cheaper than the car (only applicable if travelling to central London really). So in effect there is no choice, its not like you can pop down to Sheffield Vicotria and use that station instead. However, with the NRQ if they mess it up even more people will leave the city centre to shop at the conviniant alternative Medowhell and that can only be bad!!

[lewisskinner]

Originally Posted by hella good

if they build phase 1 first there will be no problem because john lewis can move into the new building, then they can start on phase 2..by demolishing john lewis.

I thought that the problem was that the new John Lewis (still not used to calling it that!) is moving to the current Central Fire Station, and the Fire Service hasn't submitted a planning application yet for their move to Eyre Street. I don't know, is the Fire Station move built into the NRQ plans?