Fitzrovia West Forum meeting hears quest for greening locations

New areas to plant trees and improve greenery are being explored by the Fitzrovia West Neighbourhood Forum, residents and business people were told at the group’s annual general meeting.

The meeting took place on 26 of June at the Sainsbury Wellcome Centre in Howland Street and it was chaired by Fitzrovia West Forum executive member and local resident Julia Haythorn.

The meeting attracted three of the parliamentary candidates for the Cities of London and Westminster constituency: Tim Barnes (Conservative), Rachel Blake (Labour), and Edward Lucas (Lib Dem).

Local resident Mark Gazaleh, who has championed tree planting in Fitzrovia West and Marylebone, gave a presentation on the importance of greening in the area. He praised the contribution of children from All Souls School for helping with tree planting.

Nine trees have been planted in Foley Street outside the school, adding to the three cherry trees that were dug in by the children nearby in Ogle Street in April 2023.

Around 20 trees have been planted in Fitzrovia West over the past year either as new or replacement trees.

“We witness attrition each year — failure, vandalism, accidents. I survey for these losses and request replacements. In most cases the pits are replanted the next season,” says Gazaleh.

The neighbourhood forum is trying to identify new locations for street trees to increase canopy cover.

There are opportunities for tree planting at a number of sites in the neighbourhood, including Market Place, and where Fitzrovia streets meet Oxford Street.

He stated that finding planting sites was often difficult due to competing interests for space such as cycle storage, car parking facilities and charging stations, along with underground services which posed technical challenges to widespread tree planting.

One site that they have been exploring recently is the eastern side of the University of Westminster along Cleveland Street where the current tree planting could be added to.

There are now nearly 400 street trees in the Fitzrovia West area. The majority of these have been planted since 2008 as part of the Marylebone and Fitzrovia W1W Street Tree Planting Initiative which has delivered over 1,000 trees.

Tree planting is done with Westminster City Council which aims to plant 200 to 300 trees each year across the City. From 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024, 40 trees were removed and 268 were planted in the City of Westminster.

Jordan Scammell, of the University of Westminster, gave a report on the recently re-opened Soho Poly Theatre at Riding House Street. He outlined the recent developments made possible by donations, grants and community infrastructure levy funding, and outlined plans for the near future, which include improvement to acoustics, a donor wall, and a website to advertise events.

The meeting also heard from Lee Lyons of the Fitzrovia Partnership which runs two business improvement districts (BIDs) in Fitzrovia, and from Lucy Mitchell from the neighbouring New West End Company which is a BID centred on Oxford Street, New Bond Street and Regent Street.

Lyons spoke about crime reduction initiatives and the BID’s private security patrols. He stated that unclean, litter strewn streets attract crimes such as cycle and phone theft and “table surfing”. He stated that taking pride in the area could help to “design out” crime.

The concern about crime follows a spate of break-ins and daylight robberies in Fitzrovia West during the first half of this year.

Mitchell gave an overview of their crime prevention initiatives which includes 24/7 security and dog patrols. The BID works with the Metropolitan Police and considers visible policing a key deterrent to crime. She emphasised the limitations of local action and the need for increased central government support for the Met Police.

Patrick Lilley, a West End councillor, offered his perspective on crime in Fitzrovia. He expressed his belief in the worth of increased Met Police action and a collective approach between businesses, police, council and community. Lilley proposed an increase in CCTV, particularly in shops, with a wider view camera that offers a street perspective.

Fitzrovia West executive member and local resident Yoram Blumann gave an update on Westminster Council’s Oxford Street Programme, including a presentation on the council’s proposed motor-traffic reduction measure in Great Titchfield Street that is likely to be put out for public consultation this summer.

The meeting closed with a reception, which allowed residents to socialise and ask the speakers questions one-to-one.