THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
THE TRANSATLANTIC MAGAZINE
In January we wrote about a planned redesign of one of the most iconic American-related locations in London, Grosvenor Square, and invited your comments. Following several years of consultation with local people, businesses, and amenity societies, Westminster City Council has given the redesign its unanimous approval.
The area of Mayfair around Grosvenor Square became known as 'Little America' and the square was the home of the US embassy from the days when John Adams, the first US Minister to the Court of St. James's (and later President) lived there, until 2016 when the new embassy in Nine Elms was opened.
In Grosvenor Square you'll find a statue of President Franklin D Roosevelt and memorials to the victims of 9/11, and the American volunteers who joined the RAF's Eagle Squadrons in World War II. The old embassy building, now being developed into a luxury hotel, also had statues of General Eisenhower and President Reagan, which are due to be reinstated.
The owners of the square, Grosvenor, said that the redesign was backed by 88% of people in the final phase of consultation and promised that the 6-acre garden will preserve the square's historic features as well as introducing new elements. These will include a shaded garden with biodiverse planting, a central open garden re-instating the original 1720s oval design, waterfall canopies, wetlands and channels capturing and storing rainwater for re-use, play spaces for children and an education building.
