After consulting previously with residents and businesses, we identified various locations which either have a lot of pavement space or are prone to rubbish dumping – or both! The idea is to position planters in these locations to brighten up and green our streets – but also we hope to deter dumping. We have funding that we successfully applied for from Tesco. The disruption of Covid has meant all plans were put on hold, but now we are keen to use the money to improve the area. Please let us know your thoughts.
Westminster Council have agreed in principle to the locations, so this is about making sure that residents and businesses know what is going on and have had a chance to have their say. Can you help? We are also looking for anyone who would be able to help maintain the planters, e.g. by watering, particularly in the summer.
We are very much hoping that this will lead to further greening projects as there have been many locations suggested by residents and businesses.
Click on this link here to fill out the survey: Fitzwest Greening Project 2021 Survey
It’s a great idea to change rubbish bags into planters. But where to put rubbish then? We haven’t got any rubbish bins around Great Titchfield street. We already grow as many plants as we can around our 101 door entrance. We can provide a care for any plants for N3 and N4 locations on the map.
I have noticed your lovely display at 101 – a real inspiration. And thank you for your offer to help care for the planters. If you email info@fitzwest.org then we can keep in touch about it. The rubbish issue is a complex one, isn’t it? Looking at collection times for your street, you can put rubbish directly outside your building twice a day(including weekends). The morning collection is very early 6.30am (!) which may not be convenient for everyone, but you can also put it out at 6.30pm every day and it should be taken. I know there have been some problems with regular collections but all we can do as residents is remind the council when collections are missed. And if we put our rubbish out at the designated times it might stop the piles of rubbish that are there all the time. It is an ongoing issue though and a complicated one.
Installing planters as an alternative to rubbish dumping i it’s only a cosmetic solution to the problem. I have made repeated complaints to Westminster council about a site in Wales straight out of the junction off Bywell Place where rubbish can I remain for weeks without being collected Despite complaints to our local councillors – one a pool is now the mayor!
Previously, hanging baskets suspended from streetlamps but they were removed years ago although not, I notice, from more affluent areas of Fitzrovia and Marylebone.
I have grown flowers in to tree pits in Wells Street watering them with waste water, but the council maintenance contractors removed the plants when pruning suckers from the trees.
An initiative to Green Fitzrovia is a great idea but it does need coordination and cooperation from citizens to water the planters, as well as remove the rubbish which they will collect. Someone is to be congratulated for an imaginative initiative, but more consultation with local residents is essential if this is to be successful.
Thank you for your comments – it’s great to hear from someone who clearly cares so much about Fitzrovia. You are right that rubbish dumping is a big problem and as you correctly point out the planters are not a magic solution. However they are an opportunity to brighten and green some very grey areas – and may have the knock on effect of deterring dumping. I know exactly the area you mean on Bywell Place and this was a spot identified by residents when we consulted a while ago about rubbish dumping hotspots. We are only starting with a small area and a few planters but hope to be able to spread this further in the future. So frustrating about your efforts to plant in the tree pits on Wells St – as this is such a great initiative. We have discussed this with the Council and it seems the thinking may be changing to allow it. Please email info@fitzwest.org so we can keep in touch with you about any greening ideas near you. And you are right about consultation – so important. Printed flyers are also about to be distributed to homes and businesses around the planter locations so we can reach people who won’t have seen our website or newsletter.