Restoring St James’s to its former glory
We are building cleaning experts breathing new life into the heart of London
A quiet revolution has been taking place in St James’s, London’s prestigious corporate hub in the City of Westminster. Home to British aristocracy in the 17th century and the heartland of gentlemen’s clubs in the 1800s, St James’s has always been one of London’s most historically important districts.
However, preserving one of the highest concentrations of grade I and II Listed buildings in one of the world’s busiest cities is a challenge. In collaboration with some of the capital’s largest property owners, Thomann-Hanry® have set about restoring St James’s to its former glory.
We’ve been transforming the façades of many of the district’s most iconic buildings, offering building cleaning services and removing a lifetime of grime to reveal these magnificent structures as they first appeared in the 17th century.
As one of the UK’s leading property restoration specialists, we use our patented façade gommage® technique. The method projects fine, sharp powders under compressed air to gently loosen, lift and remove layers of dirt, leaving the underlying stonework undamaged and in its bright, original state.
With work now complete on over 30 Listed buildings within the borough, including The Ritz, The Reform Club and Sofitel St James’s, façade gommage® is slowly but surely transforming the streetscene and revitalising the district. Better still, as the process is carried out from a lorry-mounted cabin, the day to day lives of those living and working in St James’s have been unaffected – and the buildings themselves kept free of unsightly scaffolding from start to finish.
Restoration and renaissance in St James’s
Working meticulously on each building, our survey teams also identified areas in need of restoration, repair or redecoration, including windows and timber. Where sections of masonry were beyond repair, our banker masons sourced and worked with matching materials to faithfully recreate replacement stones to slot invisibly into the existing structures.
As our uniquely gentle process is ideally suited to Listed buildings, we’re proud to have worked closely with Historic England and conservation teams on many iconic buildings – not only in London but across the UK – erasing decades and centuries of dirt and revealing the breathtaking beauty of this country’s proud architectural heritage.
façade gommage®, the patented non-scaffold cleaning process, has released elegant Portland stone elevations from decades of accumulated grime. Façades have been meticulously restored; windows have been redecorated; leadwork, asphalt and slate have been renewed. A remarkable transformation is underway.
Thomann-Hanry® are proud to be leading a process of rejuvenating that already number over 30 of Westminster’s greatest architectural treasures in St James’s.
Click on the map to see our building cleaning and restoration projects in St James’s.
