Mayfield collapse delays Festival Gardens opening

THE re-opening of Liverpool’s Festival Gardens site has been delayed following the collapse of main contractor Mayfield Construction.

TheBusinessDesk.com reported yesterday that Mayfield has been closed, with 72 out of 75 staff being laid off by directors prior to the appointment of administrators.

Now developer Langtree said that the opening of the gardens site will have to be put back until mid-September as it needs to find a replacement contractor to complete the work.

“We are sad that Mayfield has found itself in this predicament having almost completed the works necessary at the site,” said Langtree managing director John Downes.

“Good people have lost their jobs, the opening date for the gardens will unfortunately be delayed and we, like a number of other companies, are likely to lose money as a result of Mayfield’s collapse.  

“We are now working very hard behind the scenes to identify a new contractor to complete the works and we hope to have some positive news very soon.

“I know from personal experience how keen people are to see the new gardens and it is frustrating that they will have to wait a little longer.  However, I can assure you that it will be worth the wait.”

In the meanwhile, Downes said that emergency ground maintenance staff have been drafted in on a temporary basis to tend to the newly-laid lawns and flower beds until a new contractor appointed.  

“On the plus side, when we re-open everything will have had a little longer to bed in,” he added.