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AS the wraps finally come off the City Lofts apartments towering over the city centre it is tempting to breathe a sigh of relief and forget the stormy road which has hounded it throughout its creation.
But that would be to ignore a highly valuable series of lessons which this city can ill afford to ignore.
The high rise is a symbol of ambition over realism. They are a classic result of a project founded upon the fragile foundations of the boom years.
The project was dogged by controversy almost from the start. The height of the building set temperatures racing and there was an all-out battle with councillors after the exterior cladding was changed without consultation.
And there came the point when the scheme had to be bailed out by the Government-funded Yorkshire Forward.
These are just a few of the lessons which the city needs to learn if it is to do business in a better, more realistic manner in the future.
For there may not be a golden goose to lay a few million pounds worth of eggs in the future to bail out things when they go wrong.
Justice should be seen to be done
THE idea of Restorative Justice may achieve a level of contrition from offenders and satisfaction from victims.
But this idea bypasses the most fundamental aspect of justice in this country: it should be seen to be done.
We are all in favour of making sure criminals own up to their offences and make amends to victims. However we never believe that there is a case for this to be done behind closed doors.
In this case, the thief acted in a particularly despicable manner.
She stole from a child, no less, taking a newly-bought toy and returning it to the shop for a refund.
For that she deserved to be prosecuted, not subjected to some clandestine arrangement, no matter how humiliating.
The public has a right to know who falls foul of the law and the best way to achieve this is through the tried and tested means of parading them through the courts.
Recovery's roots
IT is always encouraging to report on jobs being created in the manufacturing industry. And the latest case of this, at local joinery firm JELD-WEN, gives particular cause for celebration.
For the Woodhouse based company, which makes timber doors for the home improvement market, is not only boosting its workforce by another 30 people, but it is also undergoing a massive investment and improvement programme at its factory which signals growing confidence in the sector it serves.
Anyone wishing to find the green shoots of recovery need look no further than here.
Got a view? Leave a comment below.
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Weather for Sheffield
Saturday 26 May 2012
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