Developer submits plans for 1,000-home community it says will be bigger than Kelham Island

Citu revealed detailed plans for the first phase of the project based around the canal at Attercliffe Waterside.

The 23 acre brownfield site, off Attercliffe Road, is currently owned by Sheffield Council which gave the developer £1.7 million to “help address abnormal costs that will overcome viability issues”.

The council said it will become “one of the largest zero-carbon communities in the UK”.

This first phase of the development includes building 447 new timber framed flats and houses and revamping six disused buildings including the former Spartan steelworks.

The second phase is expected to be unveiled within weeks.

If approved by the council, work will begin on the leisure and commercial elements of the scheme in the autumn, Citu said, and completed next year. Construction of the homes would then start in 2025.

The Leeds-based developer said its Little Kelham and Kelham Central projects catalysed transformation in Kelham Island which was recognised as the ‘greatest neighbourhood in the UK’ by the Academy of Urbanism in 2018.

Citu said it aims to replicate this success with these plans in Attercliffe and said it could go even further.

“Attercilffe’s scale unlocks the potential for an even wider transformation,” it said.

In a statement provided with the plans, it added: “A new community which can embrace the mixed use concept to harness the sustainability of the site will provide better social integration. Supported by Attercliffe’s unique position it has the potential to unite the eastern and western sides of Sheffield, creating a strong city centre link to the east of the city and beyond.”

The plans for Attercliffe Waterside

Some existing buildings will be renovated into a creative co-working space for small independent organisations and individuals.

New locations will be made for arts and culture including a multifunctional space for live music, weddings and large gatherings with more miniature pop-up food and drink vendors.

There will also be a new footbridge.

Citu is planning to get imaginative with the infrastructure.

It said: “We will dot the public and private realms with creative interventions, including a slide to change how the public space is interpreted and swings and trampolines between houses. We will suspend sculptural works between buildings and murals covering facades.”

The developer said creating a car-free landscape that prioritised walking and cycling was vital for the development, which is within walking distance from the city centre and main public transport stations.

Other environmental features include using renewable energy to power the site and high-performance timber frames for the homes.

Landscaping throughout the residential areas were designed to “feel like a green Sheffield park, meandering through the natural landscape” and the rest of the site will have a more rigid feel to reflect the pre-existing buildings.

To read the plans in full or comment, visit the council’s planning portal here: https://planningapps.sheffield.gov.uk/online-applications/applicationDetails.do?activeTab=summary&keyVal=RXDRDENYLVB00