Stevenage Town Centre Gardens

The Town Centre Gardens were designed as an integral part of the masterplan for Stevenage New Town, the first New Town in the UK. The gardens were designed by Gordon Patterson, the landscape architect for Stevenage New Town, and constructed between 1959 and 1961. As the name suggests the gardens are located within the town centre providing amenity for the shoppers and workers of Stevenage as well as residents of the nearby flats and houses. The gardens are composed of two large open spaces with a lake, sensory gardens, play area and extensive tree and shrub planting and civic art.

In the second half of the 20th century, the Gardens suffered from a lack of investment leading to inconsistent maintenance and the degradation of the infrastructure of the grounds. It was seen as a location known for anti-social behaviour and criminal activity; culminating in a serious assault in the late 1990s. The project to regenerate the gardens commenced in 2006 with public engagement over the summer months. Subsequently the masterplaning exercise gained support from the Heritage Lottery Fund and ultimately secured funding from the Parks for People fund. Works to the park were carried out over two phases with phase one (Growth Area Funding) being completed in 2008 and phase two commencing in summer 2010 and completed in summer 2011.

Overview

  • Project Name

    Stevenage Town Centre Gardens

  • Location

    Stevenage, Hertfordshire

  • Category

    Heritage, culture, art

  • Landscape Architect

    HTA Design LLP

  • Brief

    To create a new vision for the Town Centre Gardens that revealed and restored its heritage as one of the first New Town Parks whilst transforming it into a welcoming, exciting place for the 21st century: To reverse the decline of the park; To address problems of safety; To increase use; To restore the physical fabric of the park and its heritage features; To strengthen the physical links between the Town Centre, the Gardens and the adjacent Bedwell neighbourhood.

  • Awards

    Winner, 2011 LI Awards Heritage and Conservation category

Details

  • Project Team

    <p>Community Engagement<strong>: </strong>Haring Woods</p>_x005F_x000D_ <p>Technical Architect: Stevenage BC Architects Dept</p>_x005F_x000D_ <p>Cost Consultant: Waterlock</p>_x005F_x000D_ <p>QS: Davis Langdon</p>_x005F_x000D_ <p>Engineer: Peter Brett</p>_x005F_x000D_ <p>Ecology and Arboriculture SLR Consulting</p>_x005F_x000D_ <p>Heritage<strong>: </strong>Marylla Hunt</p>

  • Year Completed

    2010

  • Project Size

    3.85 ha

  • Contract Value

    3.25m

Technicals

  • Materials

    The centrepiece of the refurbished gardens is pre stressed granite bridge designed by HTA and engineered in Germany by Kusser Aicha Granitwerke, spanning almost 14m with a deck thickness of only 28cm and a weight of 22 tonnes. The bridge has no beam or piers and is the only one of its kind in the UK. Restoration of Women and Doves Sculpture: winner of the British Sculptors Otto Beit Medal for excellence in architecture. We worked with the original artist David Norris to restore the sculpture. During the tender period the original and specified foundry went into administration and we had to find another company capable of carrying out the work. A celebration in 1950’s materials: HTA designed largescale bespoke concrete planters as the main feature to the new sensory gardens. At over 7m by 7m, each planter consists of two interlocking triangles with walls that twist from vertical to a 60 degree inclination. HTA designed the patterned relief elevation to the toilet block and worked with the precast specialist to ensure the success and durability of the design. The graphic creates a visual reference to the cast concrete relief on the nearby underpass which was created by the well know contemporary artist, William Mitchell in 1973.

  • HTA Design LLP

    Profile

  • Approximate Map Location

    Location

    Stevenage, Hertfordshire

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