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Grafton Advisors wins OAS Award

14th June 2019

Article by BentallGreenOak

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Grafton Advisors on behalf of Welput has won the best ‘West End Refurbishment / Regeneration Award’ at the 2019 OAS Development Awards beating off strong competition in the process.

Twenty St James’s Street was acquired by Grafton Advisors on behalf of Welput in 2015 and has been comprehensively redeveloped behind the retained façade, to provide 53,296 sq ft of high quality office space over ten floors alongside a statement double height reception space. It was launched to the market last year with typical floorplates of c.6,500 sq ft.

The OAS Development judging panel said of their decision “the regeneration of 20 St James’s Street beat the beautiful internal refurbishment of 21 St James’s Square due to the impressive regeneration of what was previously very challenging space. The client lounge provided excellent additional amenity, and the Ground/Lower ground floor has created some fantastic accommodation out of what was previously very poor. The feature artwork which also serves as an incredibly clever functioning ‘fritting’ to the first floor accommodation was also the most innovative solutions to a problem that the panel saw throughout all categories”

Ker Gilchrist, Grafton Advisors, said: “This is a fantastic recognition of the Grafton team’s extensive efforts in creating this Grade A building, with a particular mention for Merrik Baggallay who saw the project through from the outset. As we progress towards the construction stage of another building on St James’s Street to be closely followed by projects in Kings Cross and then Victoria, this type of recognition is a continuation of the endorsements we receive recognising Grafton’s position as a pre-eminent specialist developer in Central London.”

Merrik Baggallay, Grafton Advisors, commented: “To collect this award, our second for the property, is testament to the level of effort and thought, from the entire project and delivery team, that went into transforming what was a very challenging property. I’m delighted that Twenty St. James’s Street continues to attract positive attention from the industry.”

Grafton Advisors, a wholly owned subsidiary of GreenOak Real Estate, is the property adviser to the West End of London Property Unit Trust (Welput), which was established in 2001 in partnership with Schroder Real Estate. Grafton is an independent Central London specialist asset, property and development management business with a focus on providing best-in-class service to Welput.