The Drive, Kingston Upon Thames, Surrey, KT2

Built circa 1935, this four bedroom detached family house stands in grounds of approx. 0.70 of an acre with a West facing mature garden within a prestigious road in the heart of the exclusive Coombe Estate. The current accommodation with reasonably high ceilings offers a formal drawing room which opens onto the spacious entrance hall with bi-folding doors, dining room, study, fitted kitchen with separate breakfast room and two cloakrooms to the ground floor with two bathrooms and en suite dressing to the principal bedroom to the first floor. We have not inspected the loft, but believe it is also suitable for further accommodation subject to Planning Permission or within development rights. The property does require updating but has recently been freshly painted to offer the house for ease of occupancy.

The property is approached via a pedestrian access with two separate entrances off The Drive to two separate garages but could create a sweeping carriage driveway.

In addition to the above, Little Hollow benefits from full panning consent to build a new architecturally interesting classical house designed house by Adam Architecture with the benefit of the architectural, mechanical and electrical drawings to be offered to the new buyer. The new proposed house offers a gross internal area of 10,290 ft2 (956m2). The property starts with a basement with garage for three cars, a self-contained one bedroom staff flat, home cinema or large store room, and a lift serving all floors. The ground floor is to have a galleried landing, cloakroom room and cloaks cupboard, formal Drawing Room, Music Room, Formal Dining Room, Study, Sitting Room, Play Room, Kitchen, Utility room, second cloakroom and second stairwell serving the upper floors and lower ground floor.

The first floor is to provide a principal bedroom suite with en suite dressing room and bathroom, three further suites with three further bedrooms and three further bathrooms (two en suite) to the second floor.

It offers a unique opportunity to create a wonderful home, as others have and currently are doing within the same side of the road.

The planning consent is valid for a period of 3 years (Decision 9/5/2019 – Application No:19/00648/FUL).

To the rear garden consent is also provided for a Palladium style Indoor Swimming Pool pavilion with a gym, sauna and shower facilities. The garden has been designed to be classical but with a lawn area for entertainment.

LOCATION

The Drive is conveniently located close to Kingston and Wimbledon town centres with their excellent shopping facilities. The A3 offering fast access to central London and both Gatwick and Heathrow airports via the M25 is also close at hand.

The nearest train station at Norbiton is within walking distance along Coombe Lane West which is approached via a footpath towards the end of The Drive through Orchard Rise. This provides frequent services to London Waterloo and Vauxhall (approximately 20 to 25 minutes) with their underground links to points throughout the city. The immediate area offers a wide range of recreational facilities including three golf courses and tennis and squash clubs.

Richmond Park, the largest of the capital’s eight Royal Parks at 2,368 acres of natural beauty, is close by and provides a picturesque setting in which to picnic, go horse riding, cycling, jogging, or just to take a leisurely walk.

Theatres at Wimbledon and Richmond are popular with local residents, with many a new production debuting here before launching in the West End and both also have an excellent choice of restaurants. There are numerous private, state and International schools for all ages within the immediate vicinity, including Coombe Hill Infant and Junior School, Rokeby School for boys, Holy Cross Prep School for girls and Marymount International to name but a few all within minutes walking distance.

Further Planning Information:

Little Hollow benefits from full planning consent and comes complete with all the drawings prepared by ADAM Architecture, one of the leading practitioners of traditional and progressive architecture and contextual urbanism in Europe.

The replacement house is designed in a restrained classical manner, with simple detailing and proportions evocative of traditional houses from the 18th and early 19th Centuries. This form and style is representative in some of the surrounding properties within the Coombe Hill Conservation Area.

The elevations of the proposed house would be constructed using traditional lime mortar and a red multi facing brick, with stone or timber sills and door cases. The roof would be of handmade clay tiles, with painted hardwood modillion eaves. All external windows and doors would be of painted hardwood, with rainwater goods of painted cast iron or aluminium. Two roof lights are proposed, a central one above the hall at second floor level that is set below the main ridge and a second lighting the back hall at ground floor level.

The proposed house is designed to sit comfortably within the mature landscaping, being set at a similar ground floor level to the existing property, with the house positioned in the locality of the existing, thus limiting its impact and presence on the neighbouring properties at No. 4 and No. 8 The Drive.

The composition of the proposed house and the main entrance has been designed to provide a coherent formal ‘in and out’ drive in front of the main façade, with an access drive leading down to the proposed basement level, working with the north south fall of the site. The basement level will be largely underground with an access ramp to the south and serviced with light wells to the east.

The proposal is to be of simple classical detailing with relief work, such as quoins, arches and banding course undertaken in brickwork and not render or stonework.

Also very useful to know is the fact that all detailed building design drawings have been prepared, planning permission requirements have been addressed and the project is ready to go and could be started as soon as a builder has been appointed and could be completed within 18 months.