OpenletterYF

An open letter to Yorkshire Forward

Dear YF,

Today, your contractors came to board up Sydney Works, on Matilda St. Some time ago, this building was Yorkshire Arts Space. For many years, it has sat empty, slowly decaying in the middle of the Sheffield's Cultural Industries Quarter (CIQ). Sheffield Hallam University bought the building from the council but, as their plans changed, they no longer wanted it – so Yorkshire Forward bought the building from them. You took it, and the surrounding site, off their hands for three million pounds in 2005. It's now part of the 'Porter Brook development area', a 2 acre site that may or may not become more 'city living.'

Also in 2005, a bunch of people found their way into the building, and started using it. We made meeting spaces, a computer lab made entirely from recycled computers and free software, a kitchen made from re-claimed building site materials. We created a performance space – the only one in the CIQ where new talent could actually afford to perform. We created artists galleries, put on exhibitions. We have shown countless films, had countless events. We put all money made back into the building, and into future events. The site came to be known affectionately as MATILDA.

It may not have been legal, but we were doing the right thing. Doing the right thing doesn't count for much these days, of course.

When the CIQ was first starting back in 1997, a document was written called the EDAW report. It set out a vision for the CIQ, and argued that:

“An increase in land and property values is much needed, but it could have the effect of driving out the marginal cultural businesses and creative artists whose presence is so crucial to the Quarter.”

And nine years later – voila! Many are priced out, and the only bodies capable of playing this market are huge monoliths like Hallam, or lego-flat building companies who look at land and see only the rent yield they can squeeze from students.

We have heard officials tell us that there's plenty of decent workspace developing out by the Don Valley. But that was never the point of the CIQ. Its supposed to be a cluster, a place for exchange, a reflection of the city of Sheffield, to be used by all, to benefit as many as possible. Everyone keeps on shouting about the Arctic Monkeys, but the truth is they succeeded despite Sheffield's 'cultural strategy', not because of it. They could never have afforded to rehearse anywhere near the CIQ, let alone perform here. (Though its interesting watching everyone trying to take the credit.)

The development of the site where MATILDA now stands is to be passed to Sheffield One, the city centre development corporation. (Though this is to be subsumed into a new body, 'Creative Sheffield'. Just how creative they will be with the re-development remains to be seen.)

Those of us who have put so much work, love, sweat and material into MATILDA over the past year may have no future on the site. But it seems strange to us that you should be so quick to shut us out.

Yorkshire Forward have happily purchased both the Porter Brook site and the old National Centre for Popular Music – presumably to help use the property in the area to meet Sheffield's 'strategic goals'. The old NCPM is now a student's union. Nil points.

But the Porter Brook site is yet to be developed. As we understand it, no plans have been firmed up, though Sheffield One may have approached contractors. (We don't know – they didn't get back to us when we e-mailed them.)

So it seems to us there's a golden opportunity here.

You may reply, 'you can't buck the market. Land prices have gone up, but there's nothing we can do about that.' Well, yes and no.

Here's an idea: see what you think.

1. You let us back into the building, and we continue doing what we were doing, which is fixing the place up. It's a long way from meeting all legal requirements, but we can get there together. (“Together we can!” That's what the government says, at least.)

We aim towards this: a community-run performance space, for music, theatre and whatever else people want to try. With workspaces, galleries and re-cycled computer media labs.

“But we'd have to charge you rent at market rate.”

Not strictly true: any landlord can negotiate on the terms of a lease, and we think we can pay rent in kind through the work we do on the place. Indeed, we've already put in probably tens of thousands of pound's worth for free.

2. You help us to work toward a future for the building. Maybe a survey will show it needs to be pulled down, and maybe it won't. Either way, the CIQ needs something like this, and this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for Yorkshire Forward, captain of development, to show its quality.

We understand you have to show outputs, but we think we can help. As just mentioned, we can start by costing all the jobs we do for free – to show what it would have cost to re-develop. We can also use new fangled methods of procurement measurement to show the local impact, as opposed to the naked bottom line. Work with us!

We also have some ideas on ownership. None of us would put in the work we do, long term, unless we thought that the building was owned by the community. There are things called Community Land Trusts – you may have heard of them. Such a thing would give the land to the community of Sheffield, to be run by a trust. As with the site of the Showroom, the value of the land would be captured for the trust in perpetuity. For the Showroom, this has meant they can subsidise the cinema with the rent yield from the Workstation.

Subsidy! Yes, its true! See – the market can be bucked. We think this would be better than all the money ending up in landlords' pockets.

“But we can't afford the whole site.”

No indeed – it'll be a lot of money. But we have a two acre site to play with. It could be that the whole site is taken on by a benign developer: one willing to allow a certain percentage of rent yield to support the project, or willing to let the trust buy it back over an extended period.

Also, any developer of the whole site is required to give a certain percentage of the development for 'community benefit'. (Which is how we got that daft poem on the side of the London Road student flats. Which planning officer let them get away with that as community benefit!?)

MATILDA is a tiny aspect of the whole site, and could potentially be handed to a trust, as the community benefit component of the larger development. It may need more funding, but hey – we could try and get some! Maybe Jarvis'll give us some. (Cocker, we mean, not the development company.) We could have MATILDA bonds. Awesome.

It could also be set up as a charity: that would mean that the performance space could get a huge discount on business rates. That way, it would truly be affordable. But it would really have to benefit the community, and not just be another money-making machine: creativity in, cash out. (We can be industriously creative, but we're not sure about being a creative industry.)

This way, you could allow all the work, love, sweat and material to carry on building something absolutely unique, and absolutely needed. It won't be neat and tidy, won't have a nice glass front, won't be a 'unique urban lifestyle'. We'll continue to make our shelving and work-benches from stuff we find in skips. But that's kind of the point. (Interesting, that: we recycle, but some people would prefer to spend vast amounts of regeneration money. Hmm...)

Why don't you let us know what you think? We're just the sort of social entrepreneurs we reckon you should be supporting (though, admittedly, we don't dress quite as smartly as some of the professional regeneration bods in the CIQ, and none of us have business cards.)

We know you're just holding the building until a developer can be found, but we think you might have some connections that could help. We'll do our bit if you do yours.

Look forward to hearing from you,

the MATILDA massif

p.s. Some nice quotes for you.

“Ordinary people really do have the power bring about change, whether influencing global decision-making or transforming their community.” Yorkshire Forward

“Let the People Decide!” Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (Press release about recent planning law changes...)

“Community involvement in planning should not be a reactive, tick-box, process - it should enable the local community to say what sort of place they want to live in at a stage when this can make a difference.” ODPM again

Jason's edit

An open letter to Yorkshire Forward

“Ordinary people really do have the power bring about change, whether influencing global decision-making or transforming their community.” Yorkshire Forward

“Let the People Decide!” Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (Press release about recent planning law changes...)

“Community involvement in planning should not be a reactive, tick-box, process - it should enable the local community to say what sort of place they want to live in at a stage when this can make a difference.” Office of the Deputy Prime Minister

Dear Yorkshire Forward,

When the CIQ was first starting back in 1997, a document was written called the EDAW report. It set out a vision for the CIQ, and argued that:

“An increase in land and property values is much needed, but it could have the effect of driving out the marginal cultural businesses and creative artists whose presence is so crucial to the Quarter.”

Nine years on and most organisations are priced out of CIQ, the main stakeholders now being Hallam University and residential construction industry.

We have heard officials tell us that there's plenty of decent workspace developing out by the Don Valley. But that was never the point of the CIQ. Its supposed to be a cluster, a place for exchange, a reflection of the city of Sheffield, to be used by all. Everyone keeps on shouting about the Arctic Monkeys, but the truth is they succeeded despite Sheffield's 'cultural strategy', not because of it. They could never have afforded to rehearse anywhere near the CIQ, let alone perform here.

Today, your contractors came to board up Sydney Works, on Matilda St. Some time ago, this building was Yorkshire Arts Space. For many years, it has sat empty, slowly decaying in the middle of the Sheffield's Cultural Industries Quarter (CIQ). Sheffield Hallam University bought the building from the council but, as their plans changed, they no longer wanted it – so Yorkshire Forward bought the building from them. You took it, and the surrounding site, off their hands for three million pounds in 2005. It's now part of the 'Porter Brook development area', a 2 acre site that may or may not become more 'city living.'

Also in 2005, a bunch of people found their way into the building, and started using it. We made meeting spaces, a computer lab made entirely from recycled computers and free software, a kitchen made from re-claimed building site materials. We created a performance space – the only one in the CIQ where new talent could actually afford to perform. We created artists galleries, put on exhibitions. We have shown countless films, had countless events. We put all money made back into the building, and into future events. The site came to be known affectionately as MATILDA.

The development of the site where MATILDA now stands is to be passed to Sheffield One (soon to be "Creative Sheffield", the city centre development corporation. Those of us who have put so much work, love, sweat and material into MATILDA over the past year may have no future on the site. But it seems strange to us that you should be so quick to shut us out.

Yorkshire Forward have happily purchased both the Porter Brook site and the old National Centre for Popular Music – presumably to help use the property in the area to meet Sheffield's 'strategic goals'. The old NCPM is now a student's union. Nil points.

But the Porter Brook site is yet to be developed. As we understand it, no plans have been firmed up, though Sheffield One may have approached contractors.

So there is a golden opportunity here. For the sake of real creativity and to fulfill at least some of that creative vision from yourselves, the office of the deputy prime minister and the EDAW report quoted above.

We propose:

1. The MATILDA collectives return to the building and continue to improve the space, working towards meeting guidelines of health and safety and accessibility that will ensure the space is available and suitable for everyone in Sheffield. We are aiming towards community-run performance space, for music, theatre and whatever else people want to try. With workspaces, galleries and re-cycled computer media labs.

2. Rent will be negotiated on the basis of the maintenance of the building and surrounding space, coupled with positive publicity for the CIQ and yorkshire forward. Already thousands of pounds worth of maintenance has been carried out on the property for free. We can start by costing all the jobs we do for free. We can also use new procurement measurement to show the local impact, as opposed to the bottom line.

3. Together we can work toward a future for the building, assessing the whether Sydney works can stay or not. Either way, the CIQ needs something like this, and this is a once in a lifetime opportunity for Yorkshire Forward to show its innovative quality.

4. Options such as Community Land Trusts should be explored, that would give the land to the community of Sheffield, to be run by a trust. As with the site of the Showroom, the value of the land would be captured for the trust in perpetuity. For the Showroom, this has meant they can subsidise the cinema with the rent yield from the Workstation. The whole Porter Brook development area could be built on where MATILDA is the community benefit to the larger site. Working with the industrial heritage of Sheffield and the grassroots creative community will have far greater lasting impact on the status of the CIQ than any standard development. Whilst such a stipulation may limit which developers are interested, the long term benefit to the value of the CIQ as a whole will far outweigh any short term gain.

This way, you could allow all the work, love, sweat and material to carry on building something absolutely unique, and absolutely needed. It won't be neat and tidy, won't have a nice glass front, won't be a 'unique urban lifestyle'. We'll continue to make our shelving and work-benches from what other people throw away. But that's kind of the point, we recycle, we reuse, we regenerate!

Why don't you let us know what you think? We're just the sort of social entrepreneurs we reckon you should be supporting (though, admittedly, we don't dress quite as smartly as some of the professional regeneration bods in the CIQ, and none of us have business cards.)

We know you're just holding the building until a developer can be found, but we think you might have some connections that could help. We'll do our bit if you do yours.

Look forward to hearing from you,

the MATILDA collective collective

keepmatildaalive@aktivix.org