Key part of Castlegate Sheffield regeneration scheme set to move forward

A meeting next week of Sheffield City Council’s finance committee (February 19) is being recommended to agree to give a £2.6m grant to S1 Artspace to create a new art gallery and artists’ studios in the Castlegate area.

The centrepiece to the £37m project will see the creation of a new green area revealing part of the Sheffield Castle ruins and deculverting the river Sheaf to celebrate the medieval origins of Sheffield at the confluence of the rivers Sheaf and Don. Commercial spaces will be built adjoining it to bring investment to the area.

The other key project is Harmony Works, a major music education and performance space for young people on Commercial Street. This will be based in Canada House, a grade II-listed Victorian building.

The original successful application to the government’s Levelling Up Fund for Castlegate regeneration in 2021 included a plan for a Park Hill Art Space.

The original bid promised: “Park Hill Art Space will deliver an arts, cultural and heritage destination at the Park Hill estate, just a short walk from the Castle. It will be one of the largest contemporary art galleries in the North, Complemented by creative workspace and learning facilities, within a six-acre sculpture park connected directly to the Castle site.”

Pandemic

However, since then, S1 Artspace has closed its gallery in Park Hill and was looking out for different premises to develop its plans.

In December 2022, Louise Hutchinson of S1 Artspace told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that changes in other public funding following the pandemic meant that idea could no longer go forward in the same form.

The finance committee is now being asked to agree to give £2.6m of the Levelling Up Fund money to S1 Artspace. A report to the committee states that this will go “towards the purchase and refurbishment of premises in Castlegate for the creation of a larger contemporary gallery space for Sheffield”.

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It adds: “The art space will consist of an exhibition space, cafe, retail, events space, studio space. The overall aim is to enhance the city’s cultural offer and to integrate and strengthen the cultural hub that is part of the wider Castlegate master plan for the regeneration of the immediate area within the city centre.

“The creation of studio space that will further enhance Sheffield’s ability to attract artists to work and visit.”

Disrepair

The report does not identify the building is but it is said to be “securing the future of an asset that would otherwise fall into disrepair”.

The committee is also being asked to approve moving £435k of the Castlegate Levelling Up Fund to the project for future years following the controversial demolition of the Market Tavern on Exchange Street.

The council was forced to apologise after it said that the demolition had become necessary because a top turret of the building had collapsed.

However, video obtained by Sheffield magazine Now Then showed that the turret remained in place after the time when it was said to have collapsed.

Hallamshire Historic Buildings was angered by the action as it had been given permission by the council to attempt a last-minute bid to save the building.

The report to the committee says: “The pub was planned to be refurbished as part of the LUF Castlegate project, unfortunately, following structural inspections it was declared a dangerous structure and has had to undergo emergency demolition.”