CGI of the planned new Carlton Street.
“St James’s is the most densely occupied employment area outside of the City of London and it’s traditionally been very orientated to finance, hedge fund and private wealth management.
“The average age of an office worker in St James’s is 36 and there are many high net worth individuals and high achievers so that influences both the quality of offices you provide but also the retail and restaurant mix.”
Over the next decade, the Crown is developing 450,000 sq ft new offices and refurbishing a further 250,000 sq ft. The centrepieces of the development programme are the Eagle Place and St James’s Market projects.
On a site bounded by Piccadilly, Regent Street and Jermyn Street, is the Eric Parry Architects-designed One Eagle Place which was completed last year and comprises 57,000 sq ft of office space, 28,000 sq ft of retailing and 18,000 sq ft of residential. The office element is now fully let, with corporates including Haymarket Financial, Starwood Capital and Virgin Finance having taken space.
However, the transformational development will be St James’s Market which will provide 210,000 sq ft of office space and 50,000 sq ft of retail and restaurant space.
On a site which originally was home to the 16th-centrury produce market, and now runs between the southern end of Regent Street through to Haymarket, the Crown is undertaking its biggest ever property development.
Harries sees the project as bringing the site back into the core of St James’s: “It’s a way of connecting east back to west. The lower part of Regent Street was previously a cut-off point but what we are doing will extend the quality and feel of St James’s eastwards”.
Improvement of the public realm in the area is key to what the Crown is trying to achieve.
Harries observes: “The project will revitalise half an acre of public realm and create a new 10,000 sq ft pedestrian square for world-class business, shopping and dining”.
The area is certainly becoming a magnet for foodies. The Crown has been instrumental in the arrival of Angela Hartnett’s Café Murano on St James’s Street, Aldo Zilli’s Cichetti on Piccadilly while iconic Indian restaurant Chutney Mary will also soon open its doors in the area.
There is a definite move away from the slight stuffy ‘starched white tablecloth’ dining that St James’s was characterised by in past times.
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Harries clearly relishes what is a multi-faceted challenge: “I think it’s regeneration in its purest form.
“We are starting from a great base as we are not creating a new place. St James’s is world renowned as an office destination, offering world class retail and restaurants and for the quality of its residential. It’s our job to move that forward for future generations.”
“We have really got to take these buildings back to what they were historically and make them the ‘best dressed’ once again. So it’s a massive challenge to move it forward in a way which reflects all these considerations.
“But we engage with all our stakeholders and the market and have spent a lot of time working on creating world-class buildings in an improved environment that attract the right occupiers from across all sectors.
“I think people can now start to see things changing for the better.”
The area must be personal, distinctive, stimulating and eclectic…”
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