Overview:
Southend-on-Sea City Council commissioned Marlborough Highways to carry out major improvement works to Southchurch Park East car park, which included the creation of new footpaths, the installation of lighting and complex drainage works. The site is a popular pick up and drop off location for parents of children that attend the nearby Thorpe Greenways School, so safety was integral to the scheme’s redesign.
The Challenge
Southchurch Park East Car Park is vitally important for local residents and is a convenient location for day-trippers visiting the nearby beach. Located next to Thorpe Greenways School, opposite the Southend Manor Football Club, the car park had fallen into disrepair, with a loose gravel surface that was unsightly and no longer fit for purpose. Marlborough was asked to completely redevelop the site, with a need to increase the number of parking spaces, while fitting flexible kerbs to allow coaches and other larger vehicles access. It was important to maintain the amount of green space and to provide users with a safe, well-lit area that included new pedestrian paths in and out of the facility. To prevent flooding during high tide, a new drainage system was required, and in keeping with the Council’s environmental strategy, electric car charging infrastructure needed to be installed.
The Solution
Collaborating with Southend-on-Sea City Council, Marlborough’s expert team worked with Haydn Evans to enhance the initial designs, with 150 additional parking spaces created on the footprint of the original site. Using a high specification 550mm construction material, the poor-quality ground was replaced with an attractive and durable surface featuring designated bays capable of sustaining heavy loads. As well as the installation of 12 new energy efficient streetlights, an innovative drainage system comprising six large catchpits was built, allowing for the car park to weather a 1 in 30-year high tide or storm event, keeping vehicles and pedestrians safe from flooding. As part of Marlborough’s commitment to social values and to creating greener and cleaner environments, infrastructure for 25 electric charging points was introduced and 100 trees were planted on the perimeter of the car park, in partnership with Thorpe Greenways School. During the busy eight-week project, which included the creation of entirely new footways, stakeholder liaison was crucial, with access to the school and local facilities maintained throughout.
Fact File
Client Southend-on-Sea City Council
Date August – October 2020
Duration 8 weeks
Value £520,000
Project
- Refurbishment of a large car park with more than 150 bays
- Construction of new pathways
- New kerbing
- Line marking
- Drainage infrastructure works
- Ducting for 25 electric charge points
- 12 additional streetlights
- 100 trees planted
Team
- 1 full time Project Manager
- 1 x Trainee Supervisor
- 5 x Marlborough Operatives across all trades
Client savings
- The scheme design ensured the new car park was on the same footprint as the old car park to minimise the impact of works on the green space of the park.
- Existing lighting columns were retained but upgraded with additional controls for lux levels and a timer.
Quote from client
“This car park has needed work for some time now, so I am delighted to see it ready for use. The improved layout will benefit not only visitors to Southchurch Park East and our Green Flag Southchurch Park opposite it, but also local parents who use the car park for the school. The dedicated footpath will benefit all park users greatly and the car park will also provide additional spaces for seafront visitors throughout the busier summer months to support our desire to encourage people to enjoy the entire length of the seafront and beach”.
Councillor Ron Woodley, Southend-on-Sea City Council
“One of the things I value most is their very collaborative and transparent team culture. It makes a big difference to have a contractor that wants to work closely with us and is supportive and responsive. With Marlborough, I get a team who are attentive, work collaboratively and honestly with me and don’t lose focus on delivering first class communications and compliance.”
“From the design stage, Marlborough has been fundamental in delivering the Broad Lane Square improvements scheme. During the works, not only did the team manage to keep to the programme, but they went the extra mile to ensure attention to detail and came up with innovative solutions to address issues encountered on site. My thanks on behalf of Haringey goes out to Marlborough for their dedication to deliver.”
“Working alongside our Term Service Contractor Marlborough Highways, we successfully completed renovations to the Crowstone Footbridge. The designs were provided by Marlborough, and the work was unique. The scheme was completed to budget and ahead of its programme duration.”
“I would like to thank you and your team for your efforts, the Marlborough crews were professional, courteous, and hard working all day and ensured the event went without a hitch. You and the team were a credit to the company, demonstrating commitment and support to the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham.”
“I just wanted to say what a pleasure it has been to work with Marlborough Highways over the last six months. The quality of work is superb, and there has been some excellent collaboration between Milestone and Marlborough to complete, what at times, has been quite a challenging scheme. I hope to work with Marlborough on another project in the near future.”
“Marlborough worked with us in constructing a 1.3km cycle track. There were a number of technical difficulties to overcome, and their gifted foreman worked to propose some innovative solutions to the challenges we faced. The result is a facility that the locals are proud of, providing walkers and cyclists with alternative access to the hospital and nearby school. The scheme was a lot of hard work, but well worth it.”
“Marlborough attracts people who take care and have pride in their work. Several gangs of Operatives worked tirelessly for six months to reconstruct drainage networks, lay more than 3km of high quality bespoke granite kerbs and granite channels blocks to ensure positive drainage. The technical compliance, attention to detail and level of quality finish along the entire carriageway was exceptional”.
“We saw huge benefits in appointing Marlborough as our full service contractor and we’re impressed – they’ve delivered consistent high quality service and superior quality control across every project. Marlborough, provide us with a ‘one-stop’ shop solution – we get the same quality of service and better control across all aspects of the project.”
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