Our landscape architect team was appointed by a fund manager client to prepare landscape information for the discharge of landscape-related planning conditions. The project involves a consented infill residential development behind commercial units on Kilburn High Road. Initially, our landscape architect prepared a sketch landscape design to support coordination and discussion across the wider design team.
The existing plot occupies a brownfield site with a relatively flat profile. It currently contains car parking, storage areas and a single-storey building. Access runs through an undercroft pedestrian and vehicular route between the commercial units on Kilburn High Road. Buildings enclose the plot on three sides, while Kilburn Grange Park lies directly to the east.
The proposed courtyard landscape serves several functions. It provides pedestrian access to the communal entrance and connects with two private patios facing the courtyard. In addition, the space accommodates resident cycle storage and vehicular access to the electrical substation. Our landscape architect coordinated closely with the project architect, civil engineer and services engineer. This coordination helped resolve technical constraints and integrate the landscape design with the wider development.
Planting required careful consideration because of the courtyard’s constrained conditions. Following discussions with the design team, the landscape architect located two small trees within raised planters. Additional planting strengthens the courtyard landscape and provides visual interest. However, the planters must remain movable because high-voltage electrical cables run below them within ducts serving the substation.
Along the existing southern boundary wall, our landscape architect specified a robust vertical timber trellis. The trellis extends along the full length of the boundary, from the proposed building frontage through the undercroft towards Kilburn High Road. Outside the undercroft, climbers will cover the trellis and provide additional greenery to this shaded elevation.
Finally, our landscape architect selected planting suitable for the site’s potentially shaded conditions. The planting strategy provides year-round interest through foliage, bark, flowers and seasonal variation. As a result, the landscape design creates a practical and attractive courtyard environment while responding to the site’s technical constraints.
Landscape Institutes Work Stages: 4a
Client: Infinity Asset Management
Architect: Pelican Architecture