Residents decry 'eyesore' Sheffield pub which is 'degrading' community after being left to rot for years
The unique pub has been abandoned since 2023
Residents are hoping to see action finally taken over a unique dinosaur-themed pub eft to rot for years.
These days Jurassica, in Ecclesfield, resembles Jurassic Park in more ways than one.
The once exciting family friendly pub, at the junction of Brailsford Avenue and Monteney Crescent, Ecclesfield, still bares signs with images of dinosaurs brandished across them, however now shrubbery has made its way through the paving outsid and overtaken the abandoned building.
A wrecked caravan sits in the car park, while torn-up parasols still sit on picnic benches.
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The venues has been brandished an ‘eyesore’ by neighbours, however its closure has come with some benefits, they say.
“It’s an eyesore, however it’s quieter now it’s closed than what it was when it was open,” one neighbour told The Star.
“Although it’s advertised as a family pub, it wasn’t particularly a family pub - it was more for adults.”
In December 2023, Sheffield City Council stripped the pub of its licence, following complaints around the safeguarding of children.
At the time, council officers were told of drinks being served until the early hours, as well as drug taking and dealing on the premises, despite it being advertised as a child-friendly pub filled with animatronic dinosaurs.
There were also reports of an altercation where a 40-year-old man pushing a boy aged only 17 onto a table, with the youngster being cut by glass as a result.
However, neighbours say it wasn’t always like this, and after it first opened in 2021, there was hope that the pub would prove to be a success.
Recalling it’s opening, the resident - who asked not to be name - said: ”We had a look around and I was like ‘oh yeah this is for families, this is brilliant’.
“When the bouncy castle first went up and it was clean and functioning it was really good, my son loved it, but then it just stopped being that family place and the wrong customers started coming in.”
Before it’s dinosaur makeover, the pub was known as The Fighting Cock.
Another resident, who has lived in the area for more than 50 years told The Star of many ‘fantastic’ times she’s had there throughout the years.
“It was a place for families, my kids grew up there and they were friends with everybody around here,” she said.
Despite criticisms of the establishment, neighbours defended previous landlady Chantelle Synyer, saying she did ‘the best she could’.
The derelict pub nevertheless is a cause for concern for local residents, including one who said: “It degrades the place, it just really looks horrendous.”
The future of the site remains in doubt, with no planning applications submitted for the property in years.
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Residents have asked to see action, whether the venue restored to a pub, turned into a shop or simply demolished.
“We’ve seen a couple of people with clipboards come and have a nosey round and everything, but I must admit we were inside it not long before it was closed and I think for anybody to do anything with it it’s going to cost a hell of a lot of money because the inside is just completely run down as well,” a neighbour added.
“It would be nice for somebody to find a way of tidying it up, just make it more safe.”