Sheffield Telephone Tower

Architects: Oxley & Bussey

Contruction: 1972

When I walk from the train station to the philosophy department on Victoria Street, of several alternative routes I always take the one that passes by this wonderful office block. It was formerly BT’s Sheffield headquarters and in older photos the BT logo is set proudly atop the tower, however the building has been empty since early 2012 so I can only imagine it in its bustling heyday. It looks set for a new lease of life though, as Telephone Tower has recently been acquired by developer Vita Ventures, who plan to transform the building into 340 studio apartments. While the plans for “a facelift for the exterior”¹ make me slightly apprehensive, projects done by Vita on historic buildings previously seem to be sensitive to the original character, and obviously any development is preferable to slow decay and eventual demolition. ¹ http://www.thestar.co.uk/news/flats-plan-for-heart-of-city-1-6483800