No.23 And Attached Railings

No. 23 and attached railings, Park Street

Two houses, now converted to flats, built from 1808 to the design of John Pinch the Elder, with 20th-century alterations.

The building is constructed of limestone ashlar to the front, rendered stone to the right side, and limestone ashlar and rubble to the rear. The roof is double-pile with parapeted Welsh slate, featuring coped gable walls to left and right. Brick and ashlar chimney stacks with early clay pots stand to the left front, with rendered stacks to the left rear and two small ashlar stacks on the parapets to the rear.

The exterior is four storeys over basement. The composition comprises a three-window range to the left and a three-window range to the right, with two further windows on a splayed angle corner to the right. The first floor to the left has three nine-over-nine sash windows in plain reveals with wrought iron balconettes matching those on Nos. 19, 20 and 22 Park Street. The first floor to the right features three 19th-century plate glass horned sashes in plain reveals with wrought iron balconettes; the centre window is surrounded by reeded pilaster strips and moulded console brackets. On the splayed corner are one blind window and one nine-over-nine sash.

The second floor to left and right has three six-over-six sashes in plain reveals on each side, with one similar window and one blind window on the splay. The third floor has three six-over-six sashes to the left (one with horns) and three similar windows to the right (one with horns), plus one similar window and one blind window on the splay, all with stone sills.

The ground floor to the left has three six-over-six sashes in plain reveals with stone sills. To the right are three 19th-century plate glass horned sashes in similar reveals, with one blind window on the splay. A seven-panel door with raised and fielded panels and a four-pane overlight in a round-headed plain reveal stands on the splay, with a single step to a pennant paved crossover. The basement contains four six-over-six sashes in plain reveals with stone sills, two 20th-century half-glazed doors, a small rendered extension in the area, and modern area steps.

Band courses above ground floors form sill bands to the first floor windows and sill bands to the second floor. Friezes and moulded cornices crown the second floor, with moulded eaves cornices and coped parapets at roof level. The rear elevation retains much early glazing bar sashwork with wrought iron balconettes to the first floor left and right. The house to the left has paired 19th-century horned sashes to the staircase and an early single-storey ashlar and brick extension.

The interior was not inspected.

The attached wrought iron railings and gate feature shaped tops and stand on limestone bases.

The building forms part of the incomplete St James's Square development on land leased by Fielder, King, Hewlett and Broom from Sir Peter Rivers Gay on 25 March 1790. The upper part of Park Street was commenced to the design of John Palmer and continued under John Pinch from 1808 onwards, though the scheme remained incomplete. The street was formerly terminated by All Saints Chapel at its top and was intended to continue north-west as Regent Place. The fragment of house attached to the right on the line of the splayed corner was intended to mark the beginning of Regent Place.