‘Key’ Sheffield city centre site to be transformed into seven-figure scheme

Housebuilder Sky-House Co has begun work to transform a ‘key’ vacant site in Sheffield into 60 new homes, supported by a £750k grant investment from the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority.

The 0.55 acre former Stokes Tiles Warehouse site, forming part of Sheffield’s Devonshire Quarter, close to the City Centre, will become a new community of two bedroom duplex homes and one-bedroom apartments, alongside commercial space for startups and community uses.

The scheme has incorporated Sky-House Co’s version of the Victorian back-to-back and terraced house, created by Sheffield’s CODA Studios, and includes features as en-suite bedrooms, open plan living space with cathedral ceilings complete with both patios and balconies.

Demolition of the site’s existing warehouse is scheduled to start in July and will be undertaken by the Professional Group. Construction of the first homes will subsequently begin in the autumn, with development likely to complete in 2025.

The site has been brought forward with help from the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority’s £53m Brownfield Housing Programme. A grant award of £750k will help pay for a number of key technical works on a site of this type, including demolition of the existing unit, the safe treatment of asbestos flock and the build of an acoustic wall.

The grant also directly supports Sky-House’s own growth ambitions as one of South Yorkshire’s leading regional housebuilders. Utilising £12.5m of South Yorkshire Pension Fund financing via the St Bride’s White Rose Residential Partnership, it will deliver 100 homes in 2023 and 150 completions from 2024 onwards

Key sites include Harworth Group’s flagship Waverley development in Rotherham and Oughtibridge Mill in North Sheffield, where it has also recently transformed the site’s original mill for use by the award-winning Jöro restaurant team.

The company will also look to purchase brownfield land plots at other key Northern development sites in 2023 to increase its profile as one of the region’s leading new design-led housebuilders.

David Cross, founder and director of Sky-House Co, commented: “The Sky-House aim has always been to provide affordable, beautiful and unusual homes for first time buyers and families, and we believe that is exactly what we are achieving with this £9m investment into Sheffield.

“Given the site’s complexity, grant support was essential and South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority’s funding has undoubtedly accelerated bringing the scheme forward. I want to put on record our thanks to them and Sheffield City Council for being so proactive in helping deliver our regeneration ambitions.”

By Matthew Neville – Senior Correspondent, Bdaily

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