One of the most recognisable buildings in the Castlegate area is set for a huge refurbishment as local architect firm Coda firm up plans for the development.
In 2018, Coda submitted plans for the Grade II-listed Castle House building on Blonk Street to be turned into 13 studios, eight one-bedroom apartments and a pair of two-bedroom apartments and a four-storey town house. The most recent plans suggest the bottom floor of the building, which sits on the banks of the River Don, could be turned into a riverside restaurant.
Castle House was built at the end of the 19th century by animal breeder John Henry Bryars and was originally used as a stable for the Midland Railway Company.
During the first World War, the building was home to Lizzie the elephant, who was used to haul heavy loads of steel while horses were in France.
In the 1920s the site was acquired by Batchelors and became the company’s first canning factory, eventually becoming the birthplace of the mushy pea.
A planning statement from Coda read: “Castlegate is already surrounded by residential schemes, which at the moment may seem a little periphery, but once this area develops it will soon be engulfed into the expanding city centre. The area which is a key point of Sheffield Council’s regeneration strategy. Castle House itself has been empty for some time and in need of refurbishment.
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