Grosvenor Square will reopen to the public on Monday July 20 after a £25 million makeover that has turned the 300-year-old square into a much more planted park. The reopening follows a closure that began on June 8 last year.
The redevelopment has brought in 150,000 plants, bulbs and new trees, while planting has risen from less than 1 percent to almost 50 percent. Grosvenor said the project is "the most significant private investment in West End public green space in a generation".
Grosvenor Square layout
The square now has 300 places to sit, along with public toilets, water fountains, better lighting and CCTV. Oval-shaped gardens dating back to the 1720s have been reinstated, and the park's existing memorials to Franklin D. Roosevelt, the Eagle Squadrons and the victims of 9/11 have been built into the new layout.
London Wildlife Trust programmes
A new education centre will host London Wildlife Trust programmes for kids and adults. The square has also been designed with woodlands and wetlands meant to provide homes for more wildlife, making the public space calmer while also adding a café kiosk, seating and day-long food service.
People in Mayfair and across London now get a larger green space with more access points and facilities, but the result is still a park that has to serve both biodiversity goals and everyday use. How Grosvenor Square is managed after reopening will decide whether those two aims can sit together in practice.
