Tite Street’s most famous former resident, Oscar Wilde, once referred to his beloved road as “The street of wonderful possibilities”. Well, there’s one distinct possibility on the horizon: the street could be transformed by a high-impact property development.

It is said that Wilde’s ghost haunts Tite Street. If true, then furniture might suddenly start moving inexplicably in its most flamboyant homes, once the spirit world gets wind of plans for a mansion block of red brick that would dominate the entire street.

If approved, the new development will replace the dis-used St Wilfrid’s convent and care home and rise to 23 metres (75ft) to create 42 new flats and a town house.

Significantly, a prized “historical light gap” that currently exists across the convent’s extensive old garden will be lost. A small section of the garden will survive to the south, where it butts up to No.31, the grand studio home once inhabited by artist John Singer Sargent.

Developer London Square is working on the huge project in partnership with the National Army Museum, which flanks Tite Street. As part of the development, the museum’s underground car park will be transformed into a new exhibition space. Sitting on top of that will be a new garden for visitors, to be created by award-winning garden designer Andy Sturgeon.

 

Plans put forward by London Square are now inching closer towards a full planning application to RBKC. The company expects to reach “agreement” on a final design by the end of July, so it can put in for planning in as early as September, but the path to this stage has been far from smooth.

To date, there have been two public consultations, as well as more intimate “workshops” with members of the Tite Street Association, at which there have been testy exchanges between residents and representatives of London Square.

Residents are “aghast” that, despite the wide-ranging negative feedback garnered during the consultation process, the plans have not been changed materially to address their central objections. Residents are unanimously against the massing and height of the proposed new build.

“All they have done is come back with cosmetic changes, like little details on the brickwork, or the roof design,” said one resident. “Nothing significant has changed. It’s as if they are not really listening and are moving forward with their plans regardless. We want London Square to stop playing games and directly address the serious concerns residents have about this scheme.”

American Lee Muller, who has lived in Tite Street for two years and loves the area, said: “This is a monstrous development that will overwhelm and completely alter the historic character of this street. If the residents are expected to support it, then the design must change dramatically.”

One resident who lives directly opposite the “light gap” added: “Our home will go from having an uninterrupted view of the sky and of Sir Christopher Wren’s Royal Hospital, to a massive red brick building with the balconies and windows from flats looking directly into our living room.

“The whole project is an appalling prospect. We all accept that St Wilfrid’s is ugly and run down and some kind of development should take place here, but we’d far rather live with that old mess than this disaster.”

Residents have set up a petition on Change.org to mobilise opposition to the build. So far, it has 237 signatures.

The Citizen has heard that there are also misgivings about the design amongst the higher echelons at RBKC. Pre-planning advice is likely to focus on suggesting the developer reduces the scale of the project.

Tite Street was first established in 1877 and became synonymous with artists. The celebrated painter James McNeil Whistler was an early inhabitant and built what he called The White House there, although his property has long-since been demolished. Tite Street is known for fabulous studio houses, such as Singer’s and the one at No.44, which was designed by renowned architect Edwin William Godwin. A simple one-bed flat in the street costs £700,000 and the most significant houses are worth in excess of £30m.

London Square’s development will take at least three years to complete and there are strong fears that disruption during building works will dramatically affect property values. But it is also thought that values will eventually bounce back, if a modern development that chimes with the heritage assets is constructed.

In an official statement, The Tite Street Association said: “The TSA continues, as it has done for more than two years, to strongly convey to the developers, and RBKC, the consistent feedback from our members that the proposed development overwhelms, in height and mass, the historic character of Tite Street, severely causes harm to its vital townscape gaps, and creates a canyon effect.

“We are acutely aware of our role as custodians of this special street, once home to Sargent, Wilde and Whistler, and are pushing together for positive change that is in keeping with its heritage. We are strong supporters of the National Army Museum. However, we oppose any development which would come at the expense of Tite Street’s heritage and character.”

London Square was acquired for £230m in 2023 by Aldar, the Abu Dhabi-based real estate investment company, as part of its international expansion. The 0.74-acres site at No. 29 – established in 1976 by St Wilfrid’s – was bought for £54m in March 2024 and is now one of Aldar’s flagship UK projects.

One influential property manager with expert knowledge of the area, believes that Aldar overpaid for the site and estimates that its real value should have been closer to £30m. He says that the GDV (Gross Development Value) is driving the scale of the project to make enough return on the purchase. He said: “They need to build as much as they can to make the numbers work. They are tweaking around the edges to make it look like they are listening to residents, but London Square is not altering the basic design because that affects the bottom line. If they start losing height and massing, they lose money. It’s that simple.”

 

London Square say that they have listened to residents concerns and that, since consultation, they have reduced the height of the building from seven storeys to six and implemented a design that will safeguard part of the garden, by introducing a town house. They also say that the imposing nature of the mansion block has been mitigated by “stepping back”. Residents contend that the roof is still 23 metres and is way too high.

Mark Smith, Development Director for London Square, said in a statement: “We have always understood the importance of this prominent site, not only for its location in the Royal Hospital Conservation Area, but also for the rich heritage and quality of architecture found in Tite Street.

“Our aim is to replace an out of character building that is acknowledged to negatively affect the historic streetscape with one that adds to the area’s architectural vibrancy. With this in mind, our design team has spent almost a year consulting with near neighbours, local stakeholders and the Council’s planning team. We are continuing to listen to feedback and evolve the proposals and look forward to updating the community in due course.”

Justin Maciejewski, Director of the National Army Museum, added: “Our mission is to engage and inspire people with the stories of our Army and our soldiers, creating understanding of their vital role locally, nationally, and globally. In today’s world, our mission is more important than ever. 

“This proposal is a once in a lifetime opportunity to transform our offer, doubling capacity for learning and engagement, creating 40% more gallery space for values-based storytelling with a global reach, and fulfilling the work that was begun when we first came to Chelsea in 1970.”

“With this in mind, our design team has spent almost a year consulting with near neighbours, local stakeholders and the Council’s planning team. We are continuing to listen to feedback and evolve the proposals and look forward to updating the community in due course.”

 

LINKS R US…

You can view further details of the proposal here

The Tite Street petition is here

The Oscar Wilde society is here

And a gratuitous plug for Devon Cox’s book is here (BTW – I don’t even know him, but I like authors).

Buy ‘The Street of Wonderful Possibilities’ here