City plans approved

An artists impression of how part of the building will look

A multi-million pound phase in the redevelopment of Sheffield city centre has been given the go ahead by councillors.

The St Paul's Place phase of the £130m Heart of the City project will include shops, restaurants, cafes, bars and luxury apartments along with 200,000 square feet of office space.

Up to 1,500 new jobs will be created with the new building located on the site of the former town hall beside the Peace Gardens.

New public squares called Millennium Place and St Paul's Square will also be built.

Plans for the ambitious redevelopment were approved by the city planning board on Monday.

Two new public squares will also be created

Councillor Mike Pye said: "St Paul's Place is a development that will have substantial regeneration benefits that will further Sheffield's award-winning Heart of the City project.

"The whole development will complement the Peace Gardens by bringing even more animation and life to the city centre."

Bill Kirk, of regeneration company Sheffield One, added: "St Paul's Place is fundamental to Sheffield's economic regeneration.

"It will transform the commercial heart of the city centre, attracting much-needed inward investment and creating up to 1,500 new jobs."

At the same meeting permission was also granted to redevelop land adjacent to Sheffield's grade II listed train station.

The plans are part of a £50m project to regenerate the Sheaf Street area.