Member Article

Citu to open sustainable bakery in pioneering development’s sales office

Property developer, Citu of Sheffield, is to showcase a pioneering development for the city that boasts 150 new one-to-four-bedroom houses and commercial and leisure facilities on Green Lane, in the Kelham Island area.

And homebuyers and retailers interested in the project, dubbed Little Kelham, will be able to enjoy the wares of a community bakery and meeting space that Citu has installed in its sales office.

The working bakery, which includes a pizza oven, will be used for community gatherings and business meetings until the build is complete. Citu says that the move chimes with its policy of delivering sustainable, community-focused and digitally enabled projects.

And the developer reports that the unusual sales office is already attracting attention, with more than 250 people registered to receive additional information and updates about the project through the Little Kelham website, as well as more than 620 Twitter followers.

The attention generated demonstrates the interest in city centre-based residential new build and refurbished houses, which will be the focus of the Green Lane works site. It is expected these will attract a range of buyers, from families to those new to the property market wanting to enjoy its community feel, public spaces and natural traffic calming measures.

Aisling Ramshaw, head of sales and marketing at Citu, said: “We are incredibly passionate about the Little Kelham development and the bakery was born from a determination to ensure it has a community space where people can meet and simply be together.

“We expected some interest before the sales office opened, but have been overwhelmed by the number of people getting in touch to ask for more information after seeing the signage outside of the development. It’s incredibly encouraging to see such interest - even before we have put a brick in the ground - and is reminiscent of the property market before the crash.

“The unique design of the eco-friendly, low carbon, sustainable housing and commercial space in this popular area of Sheffield is appealing to a range of buyers, and we have already received more than 250 requests for further information through the Little Kelham website and more via our Twitter following.”

The Kelham Island quarter has experienced a period of regeneration over recent years, with an increasing number of residential and commercial properties drawing people to the area.

Aisling Ramshaw added: “Our additional plans for commercial and leisure options will also ensure that this will be a very vibrant place to be.

“We will employ the bakery for events and community projects, then once the build is complete we would very much like to see a baker occupy it and make use of the excellent facilities on offer.”

The Little Kelham development is scheduled to complete in 2016. A site plan is available at the entrance to the development.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by David Gatehouse .