Practice secures consent to restore and repurpose St James’s Square gem
James Gorst Architects is set to restore and repurpose a grade I-listed townhouse in St James’s Square that was designed by Georgian master Robert Adam.
The £7m project is James Gorst’s third involving a Robert Adam property and will see the practice remove “100 years of detracting alterations” from the building – which was completed in 1775 – to reinstate the balance of Adam’s original vision.
Gorst said gilded state rooms and oil paintings would be carefully repaired and restored, while secondary support spaces would be completely refitted to provide state-of-the-art-office, conferencing and hospitality facilities.
Meanwhile, efficient new services, lighting and audio-visual capabilities appropriate for a contemporary Westminster office will be woven into the fabric of the historic building.
The building’s roof, which was added in 1936, will be removed and replaced with a new office floor and outdoor amenity space including a new fifth-floor roof garden.
At the heart of the building, a boxed-in lift shaft will be removed to reveal a solid stone Georgian stair for the first time in a century. To replace the old lift, a new fluted glass and bronze shaft will be installed.
Project architect Jerome Flinders said the opportunity to work on a building of such significance and quality was a rare privilege.
“Westminster is unique amongst historic urban centres in that the built environment largely continues to fulfil the function for which it was originally conceived, as a global commercial centre,” he said.
“I’ve worked exclusively on Robert Adam houses for the past five years, which has provided me with a rare insight into the mind of the man and allowed me to get up close to some of the highest quality craftsmanship of that era.
“The ability of these buildings to continue to be used for their original function is testament to their quality.”
Westminster City Council granted planning permission and listed-building consent for the scheme in July.
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