Although this March has been the coldest for twenty years, it is good to see that there are signs of spring all around us after what has seemed a long, dark and cold winter.  We can look ahead to the warmer and lighter days of spring and early summer.

By the end of May we will see the completion of one of the longest-awaited projects in Bloomsbury – the restoration of Bedford Square to close to its original Georgian layout (see feature in this issue).   In my introduction to the Spring 2005 edition, I noted that this project had at long last received the green light from Camden Council and English Heritage.   I am delighted that it is progressing well and on target for completion in May.  The enhanced look will be augmented further by our continuing programme of planting and improvements in Bedford Square Garden, including the construction and planting of a stumpery garden in the coming months.  This will be the only stumpery in a London Square and it will be finished in time for the Open Garden Squares Weekend on 10^th/11^th June.

Local residents and businesses who are not already keyholders and wish to have access to the Garden are invited to apply to The Bedford Office (7636 2885) for further details.

Camden Council has recently resolved (by a small majority) to grant planning permission for the major and highly significant King’s Cross Central development.  This scheme includes the Channel Tunnel Rail Link into St. Pancras (opening in 2007) and the extension of the existing station with a new Thameslink station.  The land behind the stations will be transformed with a mix of commercial, residential, leisure activities and public open spaces to create a new quarter for London, to be completed by 2015.  Permission has also been granted for the conversion and restoration of the splendid Victorian St. Pancras Chambers for hotel and residential use and this work is now under way.   All in all, King’s Cross Central is one of the largest and most ambitious urban regeneration schemes in Europe and its impact is sure to send positive ripples through the surrounding areas.

Elsewhere in Bloomsbury, Allied London Properties’ ambitious refurbishment of the Brunswick Centre is proceeding apace and is due for completion in the summer.  An impressive array of retailers is lined up to take space in the Centre, which will provide Bloomsbury with the range and quality of shopping opportunities that it has lacked for so long.  All of these developments and improvements are adding to the attractions and amenities that are continuing to make Bloomsbury one of the most enticing areas of central London in which to live and work.