19-35 Baker Street, City of Westminster

The Challenge

Realising the full social, economic and environmental potential of a street block in the West End. Issues included replacing poor quality 1960s offices and surface level carparking, achieving effective and desirable permeability, incorporating a listed building, and strengthening the retail vitality of Baker Street and its neighbourhood.

The Solution

Working with Hopkins Architects, we led extensive discussions with Westminster City Council officers and the GLA to bring forward comprehensive development of this block which sits between Portman Village and Chiltern Street.

A new signature mixed use office and retail building was designed for the principal Baker Street frontage, creating access to new public uses and pedestrian routes through the block, and new homes including a mix with affordable housing were integrated into the site layout. Design reflected the opportunity for better use of scarce urban land by optimising density, in proximity to Conservation Areas. The listed building was adapted to enable new public realm and through routes and adapted for affordable homes.

A forward leaning energy and sustainability strategy was adopted in order to create an all electric building with no operational energy related emissions.

The Results

A highly integrated and sustainable reconstruction of an important site on Baker Street, of exceptional design quality, providing 28,000 sq m of workspace, an entirely new ground plane for public use, 51 new homes, and up to 2,060 jobs.