Sheffield city is located in South Yorkshire, in the nation of England.  It is named after the River Sheaf which runs northwards through the city until it merges with the River Don near Blonk Street Bridge.  There are about 530,300 people who live in Sheffield, making it one of the largest 8 cities in England outside of London.  Sheffield is most known for its industrial history and especially for the steel industry which emerged there during the 19th century.  Although it has always been known as an industrial city, modern day Sheffield has a lot more going on as well.  Many improvements have been made in recent years to the town centre of the city, together with improvements to the hotels and other buildings that help to make up the Sheffield environment.

The beginning of the 21st century has seen a lot of redevelopment take place all over the UK.  Sheffield is one of the cities where a lot of money and energy has been expended by local and national governments in the name of redevelopment.  Although Sheffield is known internationally as the steel city, there is an interesting fact about the environment of the city that hardly anyone is aware of.  Sheffield has more trees per person than any other city in the whole of Europe, with over 61% of the city being green space.  The redevelopment of the buildings and infrastructure together with green spaces such as Peace Gardens have given the city of Sheffield a new lease on life in the early 21st century.  Sheffield is a diverse city, geographically speaking, with several hills nesting the city in a natural amphitheatre.  Sheffield is also set at the joining of 5 separate rivers, the Don, Sheaf, Rivelin, Loxley and Porter rivers.

The Sheffield development corporation was created in 1988 to oversee the redevelopment and urban regeneration of the lower part of the Don Valley area of the city.  This area of had once been a major industrial centre, but was falling into decline as the industries and demographics of the area were changing.  Meadowhill was developed in 1991, and was at the time the largest shopping centre in the whole of Europe.  This was one of a lot of places where the shop fronts of Sheffield’s industrial sector could set up business.  A Blind Flange (Blindflansch) shop was a common sight along side a home electronics shop, bringing the many different sides of Sheffield together.  Sheffield city airport was also developed during this time, but has since been closed due to unfavourable economic conditions.  Newer redevelopment projects have since been set up that build on these efforts from the later part of the 20th century.

Sheffield’s Heart of the City project is a major plan for the entire city centre, covering a total of 2.5 hectares in the middle of the city.  The Millennium Gallery is a part of this project, together with the Winter garden and the Peace gardens.  The entire heart of the city project has been funded by the Millennium Commission, Sheffield City Council, English Partnerships, the European Union and Yorkshire Forward.  The improvements that have been made due to this project have seen a lot more money going into Sheffield from the private sector, including hotels and office buildings being developed in many parts of the city.  The McDonald Hotel is a good example of great new hotel developments in Sheffield, being completed in November of 2005 and having since won many awards.

The Heart of the City project has certainly helped to reinvigorate the city of Sheffield, giving more people the confidence they needed to invest.  While Sheffield may be known as the steel city for some time yet, shopping for a Nut (Überwurfmuttern) or a steel fitting is not the only thing that the city is good for anymore.  The number and scope of new hotel and inner city developments should ensure that Sheffield continues to be a vibrant city in the years to come.