The fight to save the 150-year-old Esplanade Mansion has received a boost from the Urban Development (UD) department. With conservationists and international bodies advocating its restoration, the UD department has taken a stand to save one of the world's last surviving cast iron structures. In a letter dated June 26, principal secretary Nitin Kareer asked MHADA to have experts conduct a study of the building and restore it."

The letter addressed to Milind Mhaiskar, vice president of MHADA, refers to the letters sent by heritage conservationists from various organisations like the UK-based The International Committee for the Conservation of the Industrial Heritage (TICCIH) who are advocating to prevent the demolition of Esplanade Mansion. Kareer, in the letter, has stated that the building is part of the Victorian Gothic and Art Deco Ensembles of Mumbai and added that UNESCO has also included the structure in the list of World Heritage Sites.