Camden Council has awarded the job to refurbish Crabtree Fields public park to Ginkgo Landscape Contractors who are due to start on site this spring.
“The contract is due to commence in February [sic] 2025 for a period of 4 months, plus an additional 12 months for landscape maintenance and the defects liability period, for an estimated total value of £270,655.96,” states the decision by the director of recreation this month.
The tender process was announced in October last year.
The public open space, on the corner of Whitfield Street and Colville Place in Fitzrovia, first opened in the 1980s. Over the years it as become a haven for wildlife.
Earlier this year work began on removing a large amount of greenery from the park including all the ivy along the southern wall. A rowan tree was also cut down to make way for a notice board and paving.
A design by landscape architects DSDHA will be implemented, replacing the existing pergola and its climbing plants with a smaller structure with less greenery.
According to a council report published last year, a priority for the renovation work is to reduce the already low maintenance costs for the upkeep of the park.
“The replacement pergola at Crabtree Fields will also reduce the maintenance liability to the service. In recent years it’s become an ongoing liability to maintain and repair,” states the report.
New play equipment will be installed and the existing park seating will be replaced.
A public consultation on the plans took place during 2023 and 2024.
Crabtree Fields is due to be closed from Monday 14 April when work starts, according to a letter sent out to residents this week.
The park will remain closed for the duration of the works which are expected to finish in late August 2025.
On re-opening the contractor is expected to design and deliver a “local community day or event” targeted at “local families and older, disabled and vulnerable people” and provide support for the “friends’ group to help maintain and activate the park” with the offer of new or reconditioned tools, as well as provide deck chairs and games, states a report.
Camden Council, decision details: Crabtree Fields green spaces improvements, 25 March 2025.
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