Legal wrangle holds up city tree pruning

Feb 13 2009 by Neil Elkes, Birmingham Mail

DANGEROUS trees lining Birmingham’s roads and open spaces may not be pruned or felled from April because of a city council wrangle.

The deal to care for Birmingham’s trees is one of 12 grounds maintenance contracts, worth £19.7million, covering parks, open spaces, grass verges, hedgerows and golf courses.

But a legal appeal by one of the bidders, Central Tree Services Ltd, has stopped the council’s leisure department awarding the tree pruning contract.

Council parks and legal officials face an anxious few weeks as they try to resolve the legal issue before the new contracts begin.

Leisure scrutiny committee chairman Coun John Alden (Con, Edgbaston) said: “We are in a mess with the tree contract after the legal injunction was served on us. But we are still hopeful of getting the tree contract under way pending the outcome of the legal difficulties.”

The impasse also held up official announcement of the remaining 11 contracts to cut grass, prune trees, plant hedges and provide park keepers over a decade.

Birmingham will gain ten extra park keepers, grass will be cut more frequently and companies will be required to fill gaps in hedgerows and shrubs.

City leisure boss Coun Ray Hassall, said: “The new contracts will see all the park staff clearly visible in a new green uniform.

“These staff will be looking after our green spaces, making them and our city a greener, cleaner and safer place.”

The council’s in-house company, Birmingham Parks and Nurseries, has been awarded grounds maintenance contracts for strategic parks and golf courses plus Northfield and Edgbaston constituencies.

Sutton Coldfield and Perry Barr parks will be maintained by Glendale Managed Services Ltd, while Vale Contract Services Ltd will look after Erdington and Hodge Hill.

Quadron Services has won four contracts covering Hall Green, Ladywood, Selly Oak and Yardley.