Flats mark a return to residential for Sheffield city centre

A £6m student flats scheme will return part of the city centre to its original use as housing, developers say.
Impression of the flats next to the Grapes pub set to transform Trippet Lane.Impression of the flats next to the Grapes pub set to transform Trippet Lane.
Impression of the flats next to the Grapes pub set to transform Trippet Lane.

Plans have been lodged for a seven-storey block on the corner of Trippet Lane and Bailey Lane in an area which used to feature back-to-back homes and courtyards with communal facilities, such as a water pump and toilets.

The area was hit by bombs in the war followed by site clearances, before a workshop was built in the post war period.

It has stood empty for more than 12 years.

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Councillors will be asked at a committee meeting on May 22, to consider a plan for 63 student bedrooms and a ground-floor commercial unit.

Jim Lomas, of agents DLP, said it was part of a wave of flats flowing down the hill from Sheffield University.

He added: “I think the city is a little bit behind in terms of student flats. The council is more proactive than ever and I think people come to Sheffield and find it’s actually nice.”

The project is opposed by Ann Flynn, manager of the Grapes Inn next door.

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In an objection submitted to Sheffield City Council, she states: “My reasons are the loss of light in my home from this development. It will completely block out light in my side and some rear windows. The building of this development will disrupt my business and I am concerned that access to my car park will be disrupted.”

The applicants acknowledge the pub’s association with the Arctic Monkeys, adding: ‘nostalgia rightly surrounds the building as a result’.

But, if approved, they envisage a bar or cafe offering ‘spill-out’ opportunities for continental-style al fresco dining on the extensive pavement, ‘providing a vibrant, active street frontage’.

Mr Lomas said the flats would all be en suite helping to ‘futureproof’ the development against any change to the private rented sector.

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The applications states: ‘As a response to competition the scheme however does represent a slight diversion from their standard model, in that all bedrooms will have en-suites as opposed to a more common shared bathroom approach.’