EDITOR’S COMMENT The passing of Queen Elizabeth II last week was a shock to many. At 96 it was, of course, not an unexpected event, but I was personally shocked at how emotional I felt about her passing. I liked the Queen and she made me smile, she had some sass to her. She was just always there, wasn’t she? Whether you believe in a monarchy or not, she just seemed like a hardworking and pleasant woman. Someone who really did care, whether we did or not. And she reminded me of my gran – as I’m sure she did for many of you, too – and grans are the best.
Anyway, I digress.
The royals and real estate are intrinsically linked. The royal family owns large swathes of the country directly and through businesses such as the Crown Estate. Real estate had such a respect for Her Majesty, which we saw through the numerous messages put out on announcement of her death.
The Crown Estate said it was “privileged to have served as her steward”. The Duke of Westminster, owner of the Grosvenor Estate, said she was a “focal point for international unity, inspiring us all to draw the best out of each other and our communities”, while the RICS, of which the Queen was patron, said her “unwavering commitment to her RICS patronage will remain a special and important part of her history”.
For many in the sector – EG included – she will be remembered fondly.
In the King, however, we have a monarch arguably closer to the built environment than any royal that came before him.
As Prince Charles, he was vocal about the need for operators in the built environment to do better, to think harder and more inclusively about design, and to put sustainability at the forefront of decision making.
He even tried to do it himself. Back in 2008 he launched Tellesma, a proposed £1bn sustainable property fund to be chaired by former Landsec boss Ian Henderson. The fund ultimately failed. Trying to raise equity in the global financial crisis was just too hard, especially when the green agenda was the first casualty when it came to cost cutting.
He was unafraid to speak his mind, despite knowing whatever he said was likely to be “met by an avalanche of ridicule”.
“My saying anything about the built environment seems guaranteed to elicit howls of outrage from various establishments,” he said in an EG feature in 2004, adding that while they may have been met with that avalanche of ridicule, ultimately, they were agreed with.
One of those most famous howls surrounds London’s Chelsea Barracks, where back in 2009, he successfully got plans changed.
As monarch, King Charles is technically not allowed to meddle in politics, of course. But like his mum, he will find ways to make his feelings and passions known.
As one property leader who has worked closely with the King told us this week: “He won’t want his passions to compromise his role as King, he takes that very seriously. But I don’t think he will neglect them either.”
This current leadership, even less so than the previous, seems to have little time for real estate and just a token interest in sustainability. So a king that cares and has Liz Truss’s ear can only be good, right?
The built environment really needs a champion for what it can do, and should be doing, for our communities and our planet.
King Charles may not always be on the side of real estate but his “meddling”, his views of poor design, on our lack of ability to build decent housing and to think long-term about the impact of development on the planet have been for the right reasons. They have been to showcase what real estate can do.
To send feedback, e-mail samantha.mcclary@eg.co.uk or tweet @samanthamcclary or @EGPropertyNews
