City centre masterplanning and cultural spaces: A case study of Sheffield

Abstract

Kirsten Holmesis a Lecturer in Tourism at the University of Surrey. Previously, she worked at the University of Sheffi eld teaching MA Arts and Heritage Management. Her research focuses on various aspects of cultural and heritage tourism, including museum visiting, volunteering in museums, leisure, sport and tourism and human resource management in museums. She has published several book chapters and journal articles, including papers in Tourism Management, the International Journal of Heritage Studies and Museum Management and Curatorship. Yasminah Beebeejaunis a Senior Lecturer in Planning and Architecture at the University of the West of England. She completed her doctoral studies at the University of Sheffi eld where she investigated the construction of identity in plan-making processes. Her research interests include the tensions between community, participation and planning (particularly, master planning), and she has published her research in Planning Theory and Practice. AbstractThis paper presents a case study of Sheffi eld city centre ' s masterplan, focusing on the Heart of the City civic core. Sheffi eld was one of the fi rst city councils to use culture as a basis for economic regeneration. The literature argues that while early regeneration was economically driven, under New Labour cultural planning has become more focused on creating inclusive spaces. The new developments in Sheffi eld associated with the masterplan have been in two stages. The fi rst created award winning public cultural spaces, including the Millennium Galleries and Winter Garden. The second phase has led to private, commercial developments, which this paper argues have impacted negatively on the public spaces. The public spaces do not meet the inclusive aspirations of either Sheffi eld ' s local strategic partnership or cultural policy. The Sheffi eld case, however, demonstrates how all regeneration is located within local economic realities. As a secondary city within its region, in terms of offi ce rents, there is a limit to what the public sector in Sheffi eld can demand from the private sector. The masterplan ' s developments are ongoing and there is evidence that as offi ce rentals are increasing the public sector could exert more power in the future.

Microclimates of Urban Reproduction: The Limits of Automating Environmental Control

“…Hodkinson ). Heart of the City was also shaped in response to the establishment of the Millennium Commission in 1993, set up to administer a pot of public money open for competitive bids, available for nationally important civic projects which could aid urban regeneration (Holmes and Beebeejaun ; see also McNeill and Tewdwr‐Jones ). Successfully accessing this public funding stream was vital for the entire project (Topley ).…”

Master plans and urban change: the case of Sheffield city centre

“…The social agenda has also proven to be less successful than the economic one. Post code-based user surveys show that the new spaces such as Peace Gardens and Winter Gardens were unanimously appreciated, and strengthened civic pride and personal identification of Sheffielders with the place (Holmes and Beebeejaun, 2007) (Figure 3). But Sheffield remains one of the most divided cities, with almost a quarter of households living in poverty that is heavily clustered in northern and eastern wards (IMD, 2007).…”

Cross-Sector Partnerships: City Regeneration and Social Justice

“…Unsurprisingly, much attention has been paid to partnerships within the context of regeneration projects, especially in post-industrial cities that have experienced long-term decline (Butler and Robson, 2001;Carley, 2000;Diamond and Southern, 2006;Holmes and Beebeejaun, 2007;Smith and Beazley, 2000). Though deterioration in the built environment and public spaces (environmental factors) and business and work opportunities (economic factors) are tangible indicators of decline, scholars have identified the importance of intangible factors such as the reduction in social goods in poor communities as a further source of concern.…”

“…It is difficult to reinject the social capital lost from deprived communities, and researchers have argued that low social capital reduces community confidence and pride. This, in turn, limits the likelihood of participation in the mainstream economy, especially return to work for the long-term unemployed (Corcoran, 2006;Holmes and Beebeejaun, 2007;Smith and Beazley, 2000;Stephenson and Wray, 2005).…”