Date: 15 th April 2009
Subject: Marble Arch - Fountain Refurbishment and Island
Enhancements
1. This report seeks approval for £1,500,000 for the refurbishment of the fountain at Marble Arch. The £1,500,000 funding is made up of £500,000 from the
City Council’s Capital Programme allocated to Marble Arch and
£1,000,000 from Transport for London allocated to NWEC related transportation projects in 2008/09 and 2009/10. The fountain refurbishment is part of wider plans for improvements to the Marble Arch area.
2. This report also seeks approval to enter into a Maintenance Agreement with
Thames Water Utilities Limited with regard to the future maintenance of the fountains once they have been recommissioned. The detail of the
Maintenance Agreement will be agreed by the Director of Transportation on behalf of the City Council.
1. That the Cabinet Member for the Built Environment and the Cabinet
Member for Environment and Transport approve the release of £1,500,000 from the approved Capital Programmes in 2008/09 and 2009/10 to carry out the works described in Section 3 of this report (including £150,000 capital expenditure already approved by the Director of Transportation).
2. That the Cabinet Member for the Built Environment and the Cabinet
Member for Environment and Transport approve entering into a
Maintenance Agreement with Thames Water Utilities Limited for the maintenance of the fountain in perpetuity after the fountains have been commissioned and that the Director of Transportation be given delegated authority to negotiate the terms of the agreement.
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Cabinet Member: Environment and Transport
Date: 15 th April 2009
Classification: For general release
Title of Report: Marble Arch - Fountain Refurbishment and Island
Enhancements
Report of: Director of Transportation
Wards involved: Knightsbridge & Belgravia, Hyde Park, Bryanston
& Dorset Square
Policy context: One City scheme
Financial summary: A pproval is requested for £1,500,000 from the capital programme for the proposed refurbishment of the fountain at Marble Arch
Report Author: Andy Foster, Service Manager – Bridges &
Structures
Contact details: Tel: 020 7641 2541 email:afoster1@westminster.gov.uk
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1.1 The report seeks approval for the draw down of capital funds of
£500,000 form the City Council’s Capital Programme for 2008/09 and
2009/10, and £1,000,000 from Transport for London allocated to
NWEC related transportation projects for the refurbishment of the fountain at Marble Arch.
1.2 The proposed scheme involves bringing the existing fountain pool and bronze bowls back into operation. New plant and equipment is required to operate the fountain, new lighting will also be provided.
1.3 This report also seeks approval to enter into a Maintenance Agreement with Thames Water Utilities Limited on the future maintenance of the fountains once they have been recommissioned.
1.4 There is a separate report to the Cabinet Member for Customers and
Neighbourhoods on a landscaping and planting scheme for Marble
Arch.
2.1 The refurbishment of the Marble Arch Fountain and surrounding area is in the Leader of the Council’s programme of priorities for 2009-10 and part of his vision of ‘Building a Living City’. Refurbishing the fountains is in the first phase of a three phase programme of proposals to meet those improvement priorities. The outline programme of work for
Marble Arch is as follows:-
Phase 1
– Complete by 18 th June 2009

Fountain and reflective pool refurbishment with coloured lightings.

Refurbishment of stone planters; create new borders and planting around Marble Arch and reinstate west lawn.

Modification to the large North East Planter to improve the vista across the piazza when viewed from the end of Oxford Street.
Phase 2
– June 2009 to December 2009

Lighting study to develop a strategy for the Piazza, pathways and planted areas.

Lighting of Arch (Funded by English Heritage with a contribution from the City Council)

Close public toilets in sunken area of West Island and provide some replacement facilities.
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
Upgrading of the bollards, benches, flagpoles and perimeter fencing.

Improvements to the lawn on the east island and reinstatement of a lawn.
Phase 3
– 2010 onwards
Council Officers are considering a number of options to improve the
Marble Arch area including: -

Improve/replace the Piazza surfacing

Provision of Refreshment kiosks
2.2 Transport for London (TfL) has successfully opened new pedestrian crossings at road level and amended the footpath network on the islands to accommodate the new pedestrian flows across the islands, in agreement with Council officers. The new pedestrian crossings have made a number of subways in the area redundant and these have now been closed.
2.3 The closure of the subways on the western island has resulted in the sunken area (where the toilets are) becoming a no-through route. A decision will be made in the very near future on the closure of the toilets and discussions will commence on potential new sites in the area for new facilities. It is expected that there will be replacement facilities at surface level provided in Hyde Park near Speaker ’s Corner with two smaller units on the eastern and western islands at Marble
Arch.
3.1 The fountains at Marble Arch have been redundant for a number of years. The original fountain comprised three bronze bowls positioned in a fountain pool with a column of water projecting vertically from the centre of each bowl. Each bowl also had a number of secondary water jets fixed to the bottom of the fountain pool in a circular configuration around each bowl. T hese ‘needle’ jets projected water from the bottom of the fountain pool into the bronze bowls. Since being made redundant, the bottom of the fountain pool has been covered with a layer of gravel and a series of planters placed strategically to make the site more attractive.
Similarly the bronze bowls have topsoil inside them and are planted with flowers annually.
3.2 Beneath the fountain pool there is a purpose made plant room, which houses the pipework, pumps, dosing equipment and controls for the fountains, most of this plant and equipment is redundant. Access across the fountain pool is provided by a footbridge which leads to the sunken area where the public toilets are and the doors to the plant room.
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3.3 The gravel from the bottom of the fountain pool has been removed to expose the original mosaic tiles. The concrete slab forming the bottom of the fountain pool has been inspected and tested for water tightness and structural integrity. The redundant plant and equipment in the plant room has been removed.
3.4 It is proposed to bring the fountains back into operation by retaining the three bronze bowls in the fountain pool and provide a large volume of water at low level in the centre of each bowl. It is also proposed to return the ‘needle jets’ into operation.
3.5 New pumps, pipework and controls will be installed in the plant room to operate the fountain. The glass panel frontage to the plant room is damaged and the metalwork for the doors and frames is corroded and in a poor condition. The glass frontage is to be removed and blocked with rendered concrete blocks and a single access door provided of an appropriate size to allow plant and equipment in and out of the plant room.
3.6 To complement the new fountain a new lighting proposal will be developed, which will encompass lighting of the bronze bowls and lighting of the fountain pool. Coloured or changing light colours are to be provided following discussions with the Cabinet Member.
3.7 Subject to funding being released the fountains will be operational by 18
June 2009.
3.8 The new plant and equipment for the fountain is being designed in close consultation with Thames Water Utilities Limited who have agreed to take on the maintenance of the fountains in perpetuity at their own expense after the fountains have been commissioned. A Maintenance
Agreement between Thames Water and the City Council needs to be put in place before recommissioning of the fountains setting out clearly the maintenance responsibilities and liabilities. The details of the agreement will be approved by the Director of Transportation.
3.9 The bottom of the fountain pool will be covered in blue mosaic tiles similar to those that were used originally in the fountain pool.
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4.1 The current funding arrangements in the Capital Programme for the enhancements at Marble Arch (including the fountain refurbishment) is summarised in the following table.
Details 2008/09 2009/10 Total Comment
Transportation
Capital - Marble
Arch Fountain
Transportation
Capital - Marble
Arch
Enhancements
Customer &
Neighbourhoods
Capital
Programme -
Parks
Gross
Budget
External
Funding
£’000 £’000
700 500
75
150
45
Net
Budget
Gross
Budget
External
Funding
£’000 £’000 £’000
200 800 500
30
150
220
150
Net
Budget
£’000
Gross
Budget
300 1500
220
150
295
300
External
Funding
1000
45
2,095 1,045
Net
Budget
£’000
500 £1m funded by
TFL
250
(allocated to NWEC)
£45k funded by
1 Hyde
Park
300
1,050
In addition to these figures above an additional £100,000 is expected to be provided by English Heritage for the floodlighting of Marble Arch.
English Heritage has requested deferring this scheme until 2009/10.
4.2 Approval has already been given by the Director of Transportation for
£150,000 from the Transportation Capital programme to enable work to commence quickly on the fountain refurbishment and allow the removal of the gravel from the fountain pool and the removal of the redundant plant and equipment as well as commencing the initial design of the fountains and engaging specialist consultants/contractors.
4.3 Endorsement is requested for the spending of Capital funds on the fountain refurbishment and approval is sought to spend the full
£500,000 from the City Council’s Capital programme in 2008/09 and
2009/10, and £1,000,000 from Transport for London allocated to
NWEC related transportation projects.
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5.1 There are no staffing implications
6.1 This scheme features in the Leader of the Council
’s ‘Building a Living
City’ programme of priorities for 2009/10.
7.1 Thames Water Utilities Limited has agreed to take on the maintenance of the fountains in perpetuity at its own expense after the fountains have been commissioned in June 2009. A Maintenance Agreement between
Thames Water Utilities Limited and the City Council needs to be put in place before the fountains have been recommissioned, setting out clearly the maintenance responsibilities and liabilities.
8.1 This report recommends the approval of capital expenditure of
£1,500,000 on the refurbishment of the Marble Arch fountain, which will enhance the amenity of the Marble Arch traffic islands.
8.2 This project is part of the Council’s One City vision to improve the
Marble Arch islands.
If you have any queries about this report or wish to inspect any of the background papers please contact Andy Foster on 020 7641 2541, fax
020 7641 2541 or email afoster1@westminster.gov.uk.
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For completion by the Cabinet Member for Environment & Transport
DECLARATION OF INTEREST

I have no interest to declare in respect of this report
Signed ……………………………. Date ………………………………
Councillor Danny Chalkley, Cabinet Member for Environment & Transport

I have to declare an interest
State nature of interest ……..……………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………..
Signed ……………………………. Date …………………………………
Councillor Danny Chalkley, Cabinet Member for Environment & Transport
(N.B: If you have an interest you should seek advice as to whether it is appropriate to make a decision in relation to this matter.)
For the reasons set out above, I agree the recommendation in the report entitled Marble Arch: Fountain Refurbishment and Island enhancements and reject any alternative options which are referred to but not recommended.
Signed ………………………………………………
Councillor Danny Chalkley, Cabinet Member for Environment & Transport
Date …………………………………………………
If you have any additional comment which you would want actioned in connection with your decision you should discuss this with the report author and then set out your comment below before the report and this pro-forma is returned to the Secretariat for processing.
Additional comment: …………………………………………………………………
………………………………………………………………………………………….
………………………………………………………………………………………….
NOTE: If you do not wish to approve the recommendations, or wish to make an alternative decision, it is important that you consult the report author, the
Head of Legal Services, the Director of Finance and, if there are staffing implications, the Head of Human Resources (or their representatives) so that
(1) you can be made aware of any further relevant considerations that you
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should take into account before making the decision and (2) your reasons for the decision can be properly identified and recorded, as required by law.
Note to Cabinet Member: Your decision will now be published and copied to the Members of the relevant Policy & Scrutiny Committee. If the decision falls within the criteria for call-in, it will not be implemented until five working days have elapsed from publication to allow the Policy and Scrutiny Committee to decide whether it wishes to call the matter in.
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