About King’s Cross Central Limited Partnership

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

Fantastic area with lots of restaurants and bars. Nice that Coal Drops Yard haz lots of non chain shops fo give an individual feel. Argent have done an excellent job in the estate as a whole.

Please share one thing (or more) which you wish you had known before you moved in:

Area is booming and with a big Google building under construction and Facebook moving in shows no signs of slowing down.

If there is one thing you would change about your flat or property what would it be:

Nothing to change with flat or building, just a more reasonable service charge.

The catalyst for this regeneration was the relocation of the Eurostar from Waterloo to Kings Cross St. Pancras. Today if you were to walk from the Station to Gasholders (which is located on the upper west side of the regeneration site) you’d see a bustling community, a wonderful mixture of people from all walks of life. From the students studying at Central Saint Martins, the corporates working in the newly created business district to the ‘Googlers’ working from any number of Google’s Kings Cross buildings. At street level you could pick up your morning coffee from any number of the new coffee houses or restaurants along the main boulevards. With coffee in hand you’d have a choice to walk along the newly restored canals or venture across Granary Square. Both are equally beautiful. Granary Square by night is particularly stunning as the 1000 strong choreographed fountains – all individually controlled – are illuminated in the dark. Surrounding the square are  several excellent restaurants – all with some form of outside seating. Alternatively, you could opt for a window shop through the newly restored Coal Drops Yard – a collection of 50 stores and restaurants – with a focus on fashion, craft and culture. There’s an excellent mix of individual, independent shops together with a few signature brands.

Argent can be very proud of the urban mix they’ve created between retail, office, residential, education and very importantly open space. This is a blueprint for correct urban regeneration.

Unique is a word often overused in property but when it come to Gasholders it fits perfectly. 145 canalside apartments and penthouses built within three fully restored Grade II listed, cast iron gasholder frames. A world first – aka ‘unique’. Externally, Gasholders is striking. Internally, that theme continues as you enter the double height entrance lobby directly facing the central chamber which, while striking during the day, is even more stunning at night – colossal cast iron frames are illuminated in a pool of water tricking you into believing their almost floating. As you move around the building there are several prominent features and many of them you couldn’t find in any other development. Interestingly it’s not the spa, the business centre, cinema room, gym, roof terrace, 24/7 concierge or entertaining suite. It’s the central cores. They’re a work of art. As you stand at the bottom gazing up to their glass roofs the internal walkways blend together to form a beautiful wave irradiated in natural light. It’s a beautiful sight.

The apartments themselves are cut into the circular cores like triangles to give maximum straight-line space. Picture Trivial Pursuits wedges fitting into the main pie. This helps with the placement of furniture and increases the amount of natural light into each apartment. The sites industrial past has been the inspiration for the contemporary finishes. Interior designer Jonathan Tuckey says ‘Each apartment presents a very different set of circumstances, but all share a language and attention to detail. I distinctly see our work as mediating between what the existing building wants and what the person who lives in it needs.’

There are so many positives to speak about, yet Gasholders hasn’t been Argents fastest selling scheme. While Gasholders might be described as a ‘thing of beauty’ or ‘a work of art’ that might not be what every buyer needs. The Marmite cliché applies. Let’s face it, no architect it likely to construct a brand new residential building starting with three circular cores. They’re harder to design and they’re harder to build. They’re also harder to furnish. I don’t claim to be a great interior designer but, to my knowledge, they aren’t too many places you can go to buy a circular sofa. On top of that the additional design & construction work means its more expensive.

It leads me to this conclusion: Gasholders really is unique but how much more are people truly prepared to pay for genuine individuality?

Please tell us what you like and dislike about this area:

Underground station is far