_Lillie Square - the jewel in the crown of Earl's Court's regeneration
I thought I’d seen it all (and kind of had accumulatively!) but the 18,000 sqft ‘all-under-one-roof’ experience was truly gobsmacking – a members' lounge, swimming pool, children’s playroom, gym, karaoke/cinema room, treatment rooms, a spray tan room (!) a bar, private dining space and more – extraordinary and almost worth renting a studio flat for to enjoy the benefits when you tot up the various benefits.
The new scheme is part of the on-going Earl’s Court regeneration which will eventually straddle the Boroughs of Hammersmith & Fulham and Kensington & Chelsea.
Like many of you I’m sure, I have rather grey memories from childhood of trudging around the Earl’s Court exhibition centre, there for various boring shows and, let’s face it..it has always played second fiddle to its smart neighbours with its once scruffy streets and downbeat hotels.
Now that it is on my doorstep and I have the inside track on what’s going on, it is of no surprise to me that the Earl’s Court operations of many high street agencies are now leading the way.
A 77-acre regeneration site, It will be the largest and last significant chunk of development in these prestigious boroughs…But they weren’t always so prestigious.
The new scheme is part of the on-going Earl’s Court regeneration which will eventually straddle the Boroughs of Hammersmith & Fulham and Kensington & Chelsea.
Two anecdotes from each borough which I hope you will enjoy and may serve as light-hearted reminders to the ‘youth of today’ that London as we know it now was not always so; our definition of London continues to change.
A good friend’s Father lived in Holland Park, W11 at the start of his career. I was curious as to how he’d managed to nab such a golden address aged just 21. How had he done so very well? His answer really surprised me.
In fact when his first boss learned that he lived in Holland Park he actually said, “such a shame the young have to move out of London these days”…
Another story which tickled my fancy was unearthed whilst speaking to an older lady on a market appraisal recently.
She told me that used to be an interior designer and, back in the early eighties, she opened a shop in Parsons Green. On the day of her launch she ‘telephoned’ her Father who was a Harley Street Doctor to ask if/when he would be coming to support her.
He replied, “Yes Darling, I’m leaving London now”. You see, he refused to accept that Parson’s Green was in London at all and not some distant part of the Shires.
If you’d like to find out more about Earl's Court area regeneration or arrange a visit to Lillie Square, please contact me.
Giles Barrett is Office Head at Knight Frank South Kensington