Mayfair and Oxford Street has always been one of London's stranger juxtapositions. The former is a place of discreet Georgian elegance, full of designer boutiques and exclusive residences. The latter is Europe's busiest high street, teeming with millions of shoppers on a mission. Park House is a mixed-use building set to transform the relationship between the two.
There are eight floors of office space with only six internal columns, creating City-standard spaces, including two spectacular upper floors beneath the double-height curved glass roof. It's set to be the most sought-after commercial address in London. But office space is just one element in the mix. Eleven retail units feature shop fronts twice the average height for the area, perfect for drawing in the estimated 200 million people who visit Oxford Street every year.
The residential apartments have their own entrance on North Row.
The dramatic curves of the glass exterior have been compared to a sleek racing car, elegantly maximising the available space without overpowering the surrounding area. The building also showcases an entirely new approach to commissioned art, by incorporating it within the fabric of the building itself. Visitors are greeted by a glass prism of liquid light created by Carpenter Lowings, while artist Walter Bailey has created extraordinary works in wood to adorn the exterior and reception.
Net Internal Areas:
Office: 15,140 sq m (163,010 sq ft)
Retail: 8,140 sq m (87,660 sq ft)
Residential: 5,430 sq m (58,500 sq ft)
From the nominator: “This horrifically misconceived cruise-liner of a development has docked on Oxford Street and is presently nearing completion. It is simply a graceless, sparkling slug of commercial ‘bling’ which does absolutely nothing for it’s surroundings. The building design handles the site and context very awkwardly, whilst the execution demonstrates the pointlessness of it’s nasty, patterned envelope. One of the worst of the pre-bust design glut.”
“Truly horrible!”