Derelict places

Derelict places in London fascinate me – you can sort of understand it in rural areas where people may not be able to live and earn a living, or deprived cities where no one has the money to spend, or in france where 16 offspring all have part ownership, but in London? In central London? 

Every day I drive past this building on the number 38 bus. A huge, majestic shell of a building opposite Green Park, undergrowth hiding a blue disc on the wall as an ex-residence of former Prime Minister Lord Palmerston.

Here’s how it looked this morning…

 

Here’s how it looked in 1865…

How can a building like this, on a site like this, in a city like this, sit idle? After a quick bit of research it turns out that 94 Piccadilly has been empty since 1996 and has been on the market for the last three years following its property developing owner going bust. As a result, there are no plans to renovate, instead it sits on the books of Jones Lang LaSalle with a price tag of £260m slapped on it by the receivers.

Given the current climate and given the fact it cannot be converted into something made of glass and steel that’s half a mile high, the omens don’t look good for 2012…