“Phil Allen Design creates the largest vertical garden in Europe”

Phil Allen Design has unveiled plans for a landscape-led development in the City of London. The public realm for Citicape House is the equivalent of one and half times the footprint of the building.

The innovative mixed-up scheme consists of contemporary public realm, roof gardens and an expansive living wall (the largest in Europe), all fed and interconnected by rainwater harvesting.

We’ve calculated our landscape scheme will generate 7 tonnes of fresh air and absorb 9 tonnes of Co2, as well as significantly contributing towards improving local air quality, trapping approximately 500kg of particulate matter (PM2.5 and PM10) each and every year.

The contemporary public realm consists of large stone sculpture seats and water panels, designed to reflect the rare heritage of the site, encourage social interaction, collect rainwater and fully accessible.

The public roof garden consists of promenade and seating areas, garden ‘rooms’ and extensive native wildflowers. The garden will offer dramatic views overlooking St. Paul’s Cathedral and the City beyond. Importantly, it’s entirely open to the public and accessible to all, bringing much needed green space to the city. Let’s make all roofs public!

Citicape features:

• A new standard for the Urban Greening Factor requirement.

• 9,300 sq ft of public realm and roof gardens in the heart of the City.

• An iconic gateway to the Culture Mile.

• Over 8 tonnes of pollution absorbed and 6 tonnes of oxygen yearly.

Phil Allen Design are currently designing a series of public realm spaces for a new commercial development in Hampshire. Based on outdoor rooms, the design includes a Formal Garden as part of the arrival sequence consisting of retained mature trees and a network of stepping stone paths connecting the entrance to the surrounding areas.

A Woodland Garden is a formal ceremonial space, framed by wall corten steel planters and silver birch trees with a central sculpture. Next to this is a Courtyard Garden which is the main usable public space for the development. It consists of a wrap around tree frame with pergolas set around a rectangular path. The space is centred around a stone sculpture.

Lastly, a Secret Garden is tucked behind the building and consists of a large stone plinth seat set amongst clay pavers and ornamental grasses.