(Reuters) - A record number of London developers looking to build bespoke neighbourhoods from scratch will be emulating the success of centuries-old aristocratic landowning dynasties who have helped transform the capital city in the past 50 years.
Developments like the 67-acre scheme in the King's Cross district and a 2,818-home plan for the Olympics site are among a dozen projects that have taken lessons from the likes of Grosvenor and Cadogan Estates, areas formed hundreds of years ago that have boosted property values in recent decades by being picky with tenants and improving public areas.
"Everyone increasingly realises that design and maintenance of the environment around the buildings is as likely to improve property values as anything else," said Sir Terry Farrell, who designed a 77-acre masterplan of shops, offices and homes in the Earls Court district of west London that will be ready in 2032.
"There is a much stronger move towards estate management, the kind of custodianship the great estates have done extremely well," he told Reuters.
