Sheffield City Council aim to link key areas of the city centre such as Fargate, Heart of the City and Castlegate to create space for events and the public.
Cllr Ben Miskell, chair of the Transport, Regeneration and Climate Policy Committee, said: “Sheffield is a city on the up and as part of that we’re transforming the city centre into a space that people can be proud of.”
The proposal includes plans to provide seating near bars and restaurants, fully pedestrianize Parts of Pinstone Street, Surrey Street and Charles Street and improve cycle routes that run in the city centre.
Ed Clancy, South Yorkshire’s Active Travel Commissioner, said: “These plans are to improve the link between Fargate and The Moor making it a nicer space for people to sit outside cafes and restaurants or to get involved in events in the heart of our city.”
Recent efforts to improve the city centre have disappointed some residents and come at great expense. The infamous yet forgettable container park in Fargate lacked purpose and came at great expense.
Speaking to the BBC in 2022, Lib Dem councillor Martin Smith described the mismanagement and poor planning of the project was “embarrassing” and said: “Why has this gone so badly wrong? It’s been a shambles.”
The potential upside of the container park was overshadowed by ever-rising costs and the council’s inability to stick to deadlines. Originally budgeted at £8.8m, the Fargate project ended up costing £18m.
Their capability to deliver on their promise of a rejuvenated city centre is being questioned by some residents.
Isaac Pike, a town planner in Sheffield said: “You have to doubt their capability to put their plans in place. The Fargate containers were never a good idea in the first place but they managed to make it worse. You have to stick to budgets and deadlines but they seem to be unable.”
The plans come in the wake of the council’s plan to decommission the clean air zone in the city which has raised £7m in its first year.
They have announced that £1m of the money raised will go towards creating clean air zones around schools.