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We've Secured Planning Permission For The Pantechnicon Building We Can't Wait To Make That Into A Real Hub

Craig McWilliam is the executive director of the Grosvenor London Estate, which manages property in Belgravia and Mayfair. He has a background in land economy and real estate investment. As the director, Craig aims to balance preserving the historic character of the neighborhoods with making necessary updates to attract residents and tenants in the future. He discusses challenges like rising housing costs but emphasizes that Grosvenor sees itself as a steward and wants to encourage a sense of community among residents. Craig also mentions two upcoming projects - converting the Pantechnicon building into a hub and a new hotel development with public spaces.

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41 views1 page

We've Secured Planning Permission For The Pantechnicon Building We Can't Wait To Make That Into A Real Hub

Craig McWilliam is the executive director of the Grosvenor London Estate, which manages property in Belgravia and Mayfair. He has a background in land economy and real estate investment. As the director, Craig aims to balance preserving the historic character of the neighborhoods with making necessary updates to attract residents and tenants in the future. He discusses challenges like rising housing costs but emphasizes that Grosvenor sees itself as a steward and wants to encourage a sense of community among residents. Craig also mentions two upcoming projects - converting the Pantechnicon building into a hub and a new hotel development with public spaces.

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Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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BE L GRAVI A RE S I DE NT S J OURNA L 017

Illustration / Russ Tudor


I
was born in Newport, Monmouthshire, in what is now
the Celtic Manor Hotel, Craig McWilliam begins.
You know the one, he assures me. It was used for a
UN convention this year. Fortunately, he doesnt seem to clock
my confused look, which looks remarkably similar to gurning.
His navy eyes zoom in and out, trying to focus on me as I
glisten into view, sweaty from fresh victories on the Tube.
I try and tease out of him any possible reason why he
might have chosen a Land Economy degree at Cambridge,
a qualication so strange that it is still only available at
one university in the land in spite of its obvious currency.
My late father always denied this, but I am sure I told
him at an early age that I wanted to be an architect and he
answered that it was a seven-year slog with no money at
the end, Craig recalls. His father was a surveyor and did
well on the lecture circuit (responsible among other things
for moving the University of Greenwich to its current
location, the Old Royal Naval College).
He was a big believer
in the ability of beauty to
resonate, to uplift and to
improve the bearing and
happiness of those who
dwell in a building, Craig
explains. I think it must
have rubbed off on me
because thats very much
part of my own philosophy too.
He initially explored this set of values in Newcastle.
It was the perfect place to do it, what with the city having one
of the largest proportions of listed buildings in the country,
Craig notes. After his spell at what was then called Chesterton
he felt the need to move into real estate as investment.
And big investments in property in the mid-90s
meant one thing: PFI Private Finance Initiative. After a
stint at what has become UBS bank, Craig was poached
by a young US rm, Fortress Investment Group.
It was 1999 and they lacked a man with local
knowledge, so I guess thats where I tted in, Craig
smiles. But hes being modest; he excelled at the rm.
The gures speak for themselves. When he joined, Fortress
was worth $400m and had 40 staff; by the time he left the
gures had hit $40bn and 4,000 staff.
The nancial crisis made a big dent in our revenues,
however, and there was denitely a glass ceiling what
with being British and all, Craig explains. Still, the ceiling
must have been pretty high; he left as a managing director.
Grosvenor then offered him the part of its UK portfolio
that didnt cover the London Estate. Around 150 people look
after our operations on the London Estate, but we also have
a team of 30 that manages development projects elsewhere
in London and the UK, including from a smaller ofce in
Edinburgh, Craig claries. These are primarily to sell. We use
all the skills to do with town planning to design, and then apply
them to everything from public squares to shopping centres.
In the last quarter of 2013, Craig was made
executive director of the London Estate. Here its a
different ball game. Its about custodianship and it covers
two very different areas: Belgravia and Mayfair. Whenever
an issue pops up, its more complex because its only very
rarely that you are beginning a conversation, usually you
are entering into one that has been going on for decades.
We are always asking: What are we trying to do
here? And the answer usually is that, as places change,
as they inevitably alter, we must make sure that this is
managed for the better. Take Mayfair, although youd
think it still is as time immemorial had reared it, there are
actually only a handful of original buildings left.
Consider Sloane Street too; we need to be just as
dynamic if we are not to fall behind. And thats not just a
turn of phrase; we will not
be able to rent places out
if they dont meet certain
environmental criteria in
the future. Grosvenor
will make an example at
119 Ebury Street, kitting
it out with all the latest
environmental technology.
The good news is this isnt all about higher costs, because
the new gadgets should allow people to control everything
from energy consumption to thermal efciency in their
homes, Craig reminds me.
I remember when, in the 1970s, Londons
population dipped to seven million and everybody
thought the future of cities was going to be as centralised
workplaces with the suburbs for living in. How wrong we
were! This is an exciting time for the inner city. It comes
with its own challenges though. How can we encourage
families and young people to come and live in Belgravia
when house prices are rising so considerably?
Craig is keen to emphasise that Grosvenor isnt a
venal landlord, building for a quick buck and moving on.
He insists the estate and its residents are more like fellow
travellers. Everything done, from hosting lms to setting up
parklets, is meant to encourage a shared sense of ownership
and community. Before Craig goes, I ask if theres anything
exciting in the pipeline. Weve secured planning permission
for the Pantechnicon building; we cant wait to make that into
a real hub. Theres also a hotel scheme, in collaboration with
Peninsula Hotels at 1-5 Grosvenor Place, which will have a
very public-friendly lobby. Watch this space.
(grosvenorestate.com)
Weve secured planning permission for
the Pantechnicon building; we cant
wait to make that into a real hub

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