Optimising value from a premium asset destined for London’s super-prime rental market
Many layers of terraces: the design-phase BIM model
Lees Associates were invited to lead the design team on the full refurbishment of this 7,000 sq ft home on one of London’s premium garden crescents. Having sat vacant and dilapidated for a number of years, it was ripe for redevelopment when we were brought on board in 2019.
Acting as Architect and Interior Designer, partnering in the latter role with Lucarna, we made a few key design interventions that transformed the way the house is lived in. First among them was the infilling of part of the rear ground floor courtyard and introducing an external stair connecting this up to the existing first-floor roof terrace. The next move was to relocate the kitchen from the lower-ground to the ground-floor and connecting it to the new courtyard with wide-opening bifolds. With these two simple gestures the whole of the rear outside spaces, previously gloomy, grey and uninviting, became transformed into an interconnected, beautiful outside living space.
To add to this explosion of new outside spaces, we also put a landscaped terrace on the main roof of the house, which enjoys some of the finest views across Belgravia, Knightsbridge and beyond.
After locating the leisure spaces - gym, cinema and bar - in the lower-ground floor, the rest of the house pretty much designed itself! While the house itself is listed, not many features of historical merit remained so we were able to reinstate many period features and bring the interior up to the very highest standards befitting of such an address.
We are pleased to report that the property was snapped up by a tenant before works had completed on site, achieving a rental that exceeded even the client’s original target.
“Lees Associates worked with us as our Lead Designer and Architect for the refurbishment of this large Grade II listed townhouse in Belgravia, London.
The project was very challenging from the outset in that not only was the property listed but also quite dilapidated, having been empty for a number of years.
Lees Associates, namely James Hall and Andrew Paulson, successfully achieved a very high luxury finish to this beautiful townhouse, bringing it back to its former glory for our clients to enjoy. This was achieved through their hard work ethic, resilient nature and good communication skills. They were the glue that held that project together.
We really enjoyed working with Lees Associates and will certainly be putting them forward for future projects we have in the pipeline.”
