Kings Tower Sheffield: 40-storey 'student' block planned for High Street branded 'farcical'

Developers have applied to demolish the old Primark building at the corner of High Street and Angel Street and build a ‘co-living’ residential tower with 428 units.

The application by CJS7 Ltd and SFGE Properties Ltd replaces plans which were approved in 2020 for a 39-storey tower containing 206 apartments at the site.

If successful, it would rival in scale the 39-storey, 383ft tall Code Sheffield: tower block, which is under construction in the city centre and is set to become the tallest building not just in Sheffield but the whole of Yorkshire once complete.

But the proposal faces fierce opposition from a residents’ group and councillors, who have both submitted objections claiming it would be totally out of keeping with the surrounding area and would contribute little to the city centre community.

The consultation period closed on Friday, August 12, and Peter Sephton, who chairs the city centre residents’ association ChangingSheff, and the Green Party councillor for City ward, Ruth Mersereau, also writing on behalf of her two fellow ward councillors, have had their say.

‘A 40-storey prison block on a postage stamp’

They are both concerned about the height and how the new plans appear to target students, given the layout of largely five and six bed ‘clusters’.

In his objection letter, Mr Sephton calls it a ‘disgusting carbuncle of a building’ which is ‘totally alien to its location’.

He also criticises the ‘cramped’ conditions, saying the building will ‘likely become the slums of tomorrow’, and argues it will add to the ‘abundance of students’ for eight months of the year which he claims is not helping the city centre economy.

Heart of City 2: Here's what Sheffield city centre will look like once the £470 million development is completed

He concludes: “There is nothing that can be said to make this farcical proposal into something of benefit to the city centre. The council should tell the developer to return to the drawing board and come back with something that will enhance the city centre, instead of erecting a 40-storey prison block on a postage stamp.”

Coun Mersereau writes that there is already an over-supply of student accommodation in Sheffield, adding ‘we don’t see the value of yet another student block in the city centre’.

She also argues that it would be ‘out of keeping architecturally’ with the surrounding neighbourhood and could result in a ‘loss of light hazard’ for existing residents.

Zoo Digital, a business based in nearby Castle House, also objected, saying it had not been consulted and felt the proposed tower would block out natural light for occupants of Castle House.

Those objections were the only three public comments received, according to Sheffield Council’s planning portal, with no one writing in support of the scheme.

Developers claim tower block will ‘cement regeneration’

The planning application states: “The tower will create a visual identity on the skyline and will cement the regeneration of this area and create a new destination in the heart of the city.”

It adds: “We believe the positive contributions and benefits of the proposed development by way of design quality, sustainability, placemaking and regeneration benefits support the inclusion of a building of scale in a tower configuration in this location at the core of the city centre.”

A decision on the planning application is due to be made by Sheffield Council’s planning committee by Monday, October 17.