Located on a corner plot, the Grand Hotel has a round edge with a circular tower on top. The hotel was designed by George Wittet, one of the prime architects of Mumbai, who designed several landmarks in the city, like the Prince of Wales Museum, Gateway of India, Wadia Maternity Hospital, Institute of Science, and many buildings in Ballard Estate.
Lettering over canopy and entrance at the Grand Hotel. The hotel was the most sought-after accommodation and dining place in Mumbai and opened in 1923. At the time, it was one of only two hotels in Ballard Estate (Regent Hotel was the other), developed primarily as a business and commercial district.
The land on which Construction House stands was lying vacant till 1936 when the plot was acquired by the Walchand Group. Because it came up more than two decades after Ballard Estate was developed, Construction House has a contrasting look, inspired more by the Art Deco style of the late 1930s than the Edwardian Baroque of the early 20th century.
Construction House is the headquarters of Hindustan Construction Company, a multinational engineering and construction company founded by industrialists and the founder of the Walchand Group, Walchand Hirachand (1882-1953). Among his many businesses, he established India's first modern shipyard, aircraft factory, and car factory.
The visual theme Messrs. Gregson, Batley & King wanted to highlight was the role of the Walchand Group in building landmark infrastructure projects. They used bas-reliefs of Indian men and women engaged in manual labor affixed on the corners of the Construction House.
Hindustan Construction Company had leased the plot from the Bombay Port Trust for 99 years. For Construction House, they commissioned Messrs. Gregson, Batley & King, who had designed several notable Art Deco buildings in Mumbai, like Dhanraj Mahal, Windsor House, Cricket Club of India, and Breach Candy Hospital, among others.