Meadowhall Shopping Centre
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| Meadowhall | |
 Meadowhall logo and slogan |
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| Facts and statistics | |
|---|---|
| Location | Sheffield, South Yorkshire, UK |
| Opening date | 1990 |
| Owner | British Land |
| No. of stores and services | 280 |
| No. of anchor tenants | 10 |
| Total retail floor area | 131,922 m² (1,419,997 sq ft) |
| Parking | 12,000 spaces |
| No. of floors | 2 |
| Website | meadowhall.co.uk |
Meadowhall is an indoor shopping centre in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. It lies three miles (5 km) north east of Sheffield city centre and two miles (3 km) from Rotherham town centre.
The shopping centre was built by Bovis[1] on the site of a derelict steelworks. It was opened in 1990.
Note that Meadowhall Retail Park is a separate development, lying a kilometre to the south of Meadowhall shopping centre.
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[edit] The Shopping Centre
With over 240 stores and 30 restaurants, it was widely blamed for the closure of many shops in Sheffield City Centre and in the nearby town of Rotherham.[2] Meadowhall has a retail floor space of about 131,922 m² (1,419,997 sq ft) and is owned by British Land, a property developer. The centre attracted 19.8 million visitors in its first year of opening, and now attracts about 30 million visitors a year.[2]
Meadowhall can be extremely busy in the run-up to Christmas, and the January sales. In extreme cases it has been known to have a one in, one out policy on some stores. This has led to the centre earning the nickname Meadowhell among many local people.[2]
One of Meadowhall's largest stores, Sainsbury's, closed in mid-2005, which diverted some customers to other local shopping areas. There was a Namco Station arcade which finally shut its doors in September 2007 after more than 15 years. In December 2005, it became the home to the fifth Apple Store in the UK, and in late 2007, it will become home to the 3rd Puma Store in the UK after London and Glasgow. The centre was also home to the first and only McCafe in Yorkshire,[3] but this has since closed. The centre's Burger King was replaced in October 2007 by a very small franchise called "Burger Knight".
The centre houses large department stores such as Bhs, House of Fraser and Debenhams and also contains a large food court - the "Oasis" - modelled on an Italian piazza, with a steel dome and access to a Vue cinema. There is also a section near The Oasis for small independent retails, The Lanes.
[edit] Refurbishment
On the 13 October 2006, The Sheffield Telegraph announced that Meadowhall will undergo a £91 million refit,[4] with completion due by Summer 2007. As part of this, Primark and Next moved into the space left by Sainsbury's when it closed in 2005. Other smaller outlets, including Optical Express and The Pier have also opened in 2007.
Meadowhall recently forcibly closed 3 stores in the Market Street area, Greggs, Pollard's Tea & Coffee and Burger Knight (a very small franchise that recently replaced the centre's Burger King) will all close so that the units that they occupy can be merged to create space for a large store. Meadowhall says that it has every right to close these stores because it has break clauses in the leases that owners signed, the move has caused controversy because the stores have only recently re-opened after spending thousands on refurbishment after the June 2007 floods (see below).[5]
[edit] Flooding in 2007
Meadowhall was inundated by the River Don during the June 2007 floods, with water reaching a maximum height of 1.8 metres (6 ft). As a result of the severe floods, the shopping centre was closed for the week and reopened on 2 July 2007. Around 65% of the lower level was closed following the floods, with many shops boarded up for refurbishment and repair.
[edit] Transport connections
Meadowhall is situated next to the M1 motorway, between Sheffield and Rotherham, in the shadow of the Tinsley Viaduct. It forms the end of the Five Weirs Walk, an 8 km walk from the city centre.
Meadowhall also has a transport interchange which includes rail, bus and tram facilities, located at Meadowhall Interchange. It is surrounded on all the other sides by car parks and even has its own ring road. It is the only shopping centre in Britain that combines a bus, rail and tram interchange.[6]
[edit] Awards
The Centre has won many awards, including two awards for innovative events at the ICSC maxi awards 2006, held in Chicago[7] and two awards for its Retail Bonding Programme (in best Retail Partnership category) and also for its Commercialisation, (adding value to the customer shopping experience) at the BCSC Purple Apple Awards in London.[8]
[edit] References
- ^ Construction Manager of the Year 1991
- ^ a b c Meadowhall Case Study
- ^ Meadowhall: A fairytale castle to consumerism
- ^ £91 Million Makeover For Meadowhall
- ^ http://www.thestar.co.uk/news/Pollards-closure-is-a-bitter.4088841.jp
- ^ Northwood (Sheffield Estate Agents)
- ^ ICSC Awards
- ^ BCSC Awards
[edit] External links
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