Sheffield Council to show off £3.5m Grey to Green project with street party

Sheffield Council will show off its £3.5m Grey to Green corridor in West Bar and Snig Hill from midday to 3pm on Thursday (July 14).

The first phase of the project has turned a grey area of the Riverside Business District into a display of public art with colourful flower beds, trees and benches. But the project is not just superficial - it is also the country’s longest sustainable drainage system.

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The council’s deputy leader Leigh Bramall said: “The support of the residents and businesses in West Bar has been crucial to this project and we’d like to thank them for their patience during this time. We’d like to welcome them, and prospective businesses who want to see what this great city centre location has to offer their clients and employees.

“The Grey to Green project is creating an attractive setting for new investment and jobs in the city, improving our resilience to climate change and flooding, and providing better links with the rest of the city centre.”

People coming to the event can also have a first glimpse at Love Square, a new pocket park which links West Bar with Snig Hill and Bridge Street.

The finished project will eventually transform 1.2 kilometres of redundant roads. The planted drainage area has been designed by the council and leading national experts to help flood relief by soaking up run off to the river within a flood zone and helping to reduce flood risk from surface water.

Five art features have been added to provide instant new landmarks and to reveal some of the area’s colourful and unexpected history and associations – telling stories of when West Bar was the city’s party street.

The artworks resemble modern totem poles and each one is 4.2 metres high. They are made from stone and metal, and incorporate local stories together with eye-catching mirror and lighting effects.

There have already been a number of plaudits for the new scheme.

Director of Urbo Regeneration, who worked with the council, Andy Dainty said: “We have invested heavily in the rapidly-improving area around West Bar and the Grey to Green scheme has made a huge difference to confidence in the area.

“We expect investment to continue now with the Love Square part of our site under construction and large scale office and residential developments hopefully to follow.”

Peter Mahy, managing partner of Howells solicitors which is based in West Bar, said “The Grey to Green scheme has transformed the area. It has created a very pleasant environment for staff and clients and is looking better every day.”

And Mike Trees from South Yorkshire Police added: “From the onset of the work I was a little sceptical as to how a grey urban street scene could be transformed in to a green oasis while still fulfilling its need to be a through access road.

“The grey to green scheme achieved exactly what the schemes name suggested. The area is now a joy to drive through, walk through or just spend a few minutes to ponder.”

Phase 1 of the scheme started in April 2015 and cost £3.5 million using funding from the new Sheffield City Region Investment Fund - the first project to be funded from this pot - and European Regional Development Fund. This is aimed at unlocking key strategic urban gateways and supporting urban economic infrastructure.