Opening of events venue delayed until 2027

Sheffield City Council has insisted it remains committed to opening a new events venue after the project was delayed.

Event Central on Fargate had been due to open in the second half of this year, but will now not open until 2027, the local authority confirmed.

The council said it needed to find "an alternative permanent power connection for the building following changes to a previously agreed solution".

Alexi Dimond, who chairs the council's Transport, Regeneration and Climate committee, said: "Our priority is to secure the permanent power the building needs while limiting any impact to Fargate and protecting the investment already made in the area."

Dimond added: "The project had an accepted electricity connection when the construction contract was awarded.

"Since that position changed, our teams have been working with Northern Powergrid and specialist contractors to find the safest and most practical alternative."

A council spokesperson said it hoped to be able to make a final recommendation by the end of the year.

They said provisional options for the site would be tested in October while looking to minimise impact on the surrounding area.

The sight of construction work and equipment on Fargate has become a familiar one in recent years as part of efforts to revitalise the city centre.

The scheme had been halted last year after the original budget for construction doubled from £7.7m to £14.4m, before the South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority stepped in to help bridge the funding gap.

Once open, Event Central will host a 200-person live event space and a cafe and bar area on the ground floor, with the four upper floors used as co-working space along with meeting rooms.

Ben Miskell, who chairs the council's Economic Development, Skills and Culture Policy committee, previously said the venue would be "a crucial part of our vision for Fargate, attracting more visitors to this well-loved area of the city centre".

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