St. Pauls Tower
Encyclopedia
St Paul's Tower and St Paul's View, is a major development completed in April 2011 situated in the city centre
of Sheffield
, South Yorkshire
, England
.
The scheme consists of a 32 storey tower called St Paul's Tower, which is primarily faced with glass, along with a 9 storey block called St Paul's View, which is primarily faced with glass, sandstone and bronze. They are linked at the bottom by one floor of retail space and a roof terrace atop the retail building.
It fronts onto two new squares, Millennium Square
and St Paul's Square, part of a new bar and restaurant district. The towers and associated squares form part of the St Paul's Place
development, which also includes other three office blocks, a multi-storey car park
and a casino
, and faces onto Hallam Square, less than 100 metres (328.1 ft) from Sheffield railway station. They represent just one element of the wider regeneration of the area around Sheffield Town Hall
, known as the Heart of the City Project.
The tower became the tallest building in Sheffield when completed in August 2010, at 101 metres (331.4 ft), overtaking the Arts Tower
by a significant margin. The tower and its smaller neighbour provides private apartments for city centre living, with retail on the ground-floor of the tower, facing Arundel Gate and restaurants on the upper-ground floor of St Paul's View, facing St Paul's Place.
The development includes a total of 316 one and two-bedroom apartments located in two linked towers of 32 and 9 storeys. The project's design is conservatively modern, complimenting the surrounding buildings such as the adjacent Grade 1 listed Town Hall and the modern Winter Garden
. According to the official website for the project;
. The insolvency followed from a series of large financial losses, spiralling lending costs and falling property market values. Although construction at St Paul's tower was not immediately affected, a number of completed developments were placed under the control of the administrators (Ernst & Young
). The Sheffield residential property market had been severely hit by credit turmoil; falling 17% in the 12 months to June 2008.
news programme reported that the exterior cladding for the main tower had been significantly changed due to costs and was causing concern amongst Sheffield City Council planning officials - and the wider public. Two well known websites that had been following the construction of the tower reported that the council was calling a halt to any more cladding being placed on the building pending a decision regarding as to whether the new design complied with the original plans. A revised set of design plans were drafted before being finally approved in December 2008. The new plans removed or modified certain features of the build, such as the removal of the spire and increased thickness of the window frames.
Sheffield City Centre
Sheffield City Centre—often just referred to as town—is a district of the City of Sheffield, and part of the Sheffield Central ward. It includes the area that is within a radius of roughly of Sheffield Cathedral, and is encircled by the Inner Ring Road—a circular route started in the late 1960s...
of Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
, South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire
South Yorkshire is a metropolitan county in the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England. It has a population of 1.29 million. It consists of four metropolitan boroughs: Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham, and City of Sheffield...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
The scheme consists of a 32 storey tower called St Paul's Tower, which is primarily faced with glass, along with a 9 storey block called St Paul's View, which is primarily faced with glass, sandstone and bronze. They are linked at the bottom by one floor of retail space and a roof terrace atop the retail building.
It fronts onto two new squares, Millennium Square
Millennium Square (Sheffield)
Millennium Square is a modern city square in Sheffield, England. It was created as part of the Heart of the City project that began in 1998 and has become a central feature in Sheffield’s redeveloped city centre...
and St Paul's Square, part of a new bar and restaurant district. The towers and associated squares form part of the St Paul's Place
St Paul's Place
St Paul's Place is part of the Heart of the City project in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. It encompasses the new office blocks surrounding the Peace Gardens, the car park and is linked to the St. Pauls Tower...
development, which also includes other three office blocks, a multi-storey car park
Multi-storey car park
A multi-storey car-park is a building designed specifically to be for car parking and where there are a number of floors or levels on which parking takes place...
and a casino
Casino
In modern English, a casino is a facility which houses and accommodates certain types of gambling activities. Casinos are most commonly built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships or other tourist attractions...
, and faces onto Hallam Square, less than 100 metres (328.1 ft) from Sheffield railway station. They represent just one element of the wider regeneration of the area around Sheffield Town Hall
Sheffield Town Hall
Sheffield Town Hall is a building in the City of Sheffield, England. The building is used by Sheffield City Council, and also contains a publicly displayed collection of silverware. The current building, Sheffield's fourth town hall, is located on Pinstone Street. It was designed by the...
, known as the Heart of the City Project.
The tower became the tallest building in Sheffield when completed in August 2010, at 101 metres (331.4 ft), overtaking the Arts Tower
Arts Tower
The Arts Tower is a building at 12 Bolsover Street in Sheffield, England belonging to the University of Sheffield and opened in 1966. English Heritage has called it "the most elegant university tower block in Britain of its period...
by a significant margin. The tower and its smaller neighbour provides private apartments for city centre living, with retail on the ground-floor of the tower, facing Arundel Gate and restaurants on the upper-ground floor of St Paul's View, facing St Paul's Place.
Development
Planning permission for the project was first granted in October 2005, with excavation work beginning in May 2006 and construction officially commencing in May 2007. The construction process of the development was originally due to be completed by late 2008.The development includes a total of 316 one and two-bedroom apartments located in two linked towers of 32 and 9 storeys. The project's design is conservatively modern, complimenting the surrounding buildings such as the adjacent Grade 1 listed Town Hall and the modern Winter Garden
Sheffield Winter Gardens
Sheffield Winter Garden in the city of Sheffield in South Yorkshire is one of the largest temperate glasshouses to be built in the UK during the last hundred years, and the largest urban glasshouse anywhere in Europe. It is home to more than 2,000 plants from all around the world...
. According to the official website for the project;
Collapse of City Lofts Group Plc
On 4 July 2008, it was announced that the company leading this project, City Lofts Group Plc, had gone into administrationAdministration (insolvency)
As a legal concept, administration is a procedure under the insolvency laws of a number of common law jurisdictions. It functions as a rescue mechanism for insolvent entities and allows them to carry on running their business. The process – an alternative to liquidation – is often known as going...
. The insolvency followed from a series of large financial losses, spiralling lending costs and falling property market values. Although construction at St Paul's tower was not immediately affected, a number of completed developments were placed under the control of the administrators (Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young is one of the largest professional services networks in the world and one of the "Big Four" accountancy firms, along with Deloitte, KPMG and PricewaterhouseCoopers ....
). The Sheffield residential property market had been severely hit by credit turmoil; falling 17% in the 12 months to June 2008.
Cladding controversy
On Friday 3 October 2008, the BBC Look NorthBBC Look North (Yorkshire and North Midlands)
BBC Look North is the BBC's regional television news service for West & South Yorkshire, parts of North Yorkshire and the North Midlands. The programmes as produced and broadcast from the BBC Broadcasting Centre at St...
news programme reported that the exterior cladding for the main tower had been significantly changed due to costs and was causing concern amongst Sheffield City Council planning officials - and the wider public. Two well known websites that had been following the construction of the tower reported that the council was calling a halt to any more cladding being placed on the building pending a decision regarding as to whether the new design complied with the original plans. A revised set of design plans were drafted before being finally approved in December 2008. The new plans removed or modified certain features of the build, such as the removal of the spire and increased thickness of the window frames.
External links
- St. Pauls Tower Official website
- St Paul's Tower on skyscrapernews.com
- Conran & Partners website