Derelict brewery site homes plan set for approval

Brewing on the site dates back to the 1800s

Plans to build a new city neighbourhood on the site of a derelict brewery in the Neepsend area of Sheffield are set to be approved later.

Developers want to build about 550 apartments, as well as offices and shops, at the former Cannon Brewery, which produced Stones Bitter until its closure in 1999.

Sheffield City Council's planning and highways committee is being advised to approve outline permission for the scheme at its meeting on Tuesday.

The site has been used by brewing companies since 1838 and the plans propose retaining the historic brewhouse, grain warehouse and water tower.

However, the application also proposes the demolition of a warehouse on the northern end of the site and partial clearance of the brewery buildings on the southern end.

The proposal by Manchester-based developer Capital&Centric, said there would be a mix of one, two and three-bedroom units as well as about 3,200 sq m of commercial workspace and retail spaces.

If outline planning permission was granted, specific details about the number, size and appearance of new homes would be put forward at a later date, it added.

"Should the plans be approved, demolition and remediation will start as soon as possible in preparation for redevelopment of the site," a spokesperson said.

The site has gone from being home to a well-known brewery to a state of dilapidation

Tom Wilmot, joint managing director of Capital&Centric, said: “As the city’s popularity sky rockets, it’s important that the districts not only deliver growth but have a real sense of character and personality. Cannon Brewery has that in spades.

"Our plan is all about creating a diverse and interesting neighbourhood, with genuine community spirit, on a massive brownfield site that’s been derelict for decades."

A report by planning officials said that although the area had originally been allocated for "general industry", the council had proposed the site, along with much of the surrounding area of Neepsend, as a priority location for housing growth.

It added that the benefits of the development would "significantly and demonstrably outweigh the adverse impacts" and it was recommended for approval subject to conditions.

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