Mayfield eyes tiny patch of land for Manchester’s smallest park
Dubbed Pigeon Triangle, the 7,200 sq ft public space aims to create a more attractive gateway to the emerging mixed-use neighbourhood.
Mayfield Partnership, led by Landsec, has submitted plans to transform a triangular island site off Fairfield Street, Baring Street, and Travis Street between Piccadilly Station and Mayfield Park into a pintsize area of public realm.
The garden has been designed by architect Studio Egret West and uses ideas and materials from the Avanade Intelligent Garden, which was designed by Tom Massey and won a Gold Medal at the 2025 RHS Chelsea Flower Show.
The 19-tree garden would provide “an inclusive and sustainable urban greenspace that provides visitors with opportunities for rest, social interaction and contact with nature in a very urban setting,” according to Studio Egret West.
The space builds on already consented highway works on Baring Street, Buxton Street, Berry Street, and Travis Street, and aims to improve the setting of the former Mayfield ticket hall and Star and Garter pub.
Henrietta Nowne, development director at Landsec on behalf of The Mayfield Partnership, said: “Innovation, nature, and public space are central to the creation of the Mayfield district, these plans epitomise all that with the proposed arrival of the award-winning Avanade Intelligent Garden.
“If approved, the garden will transform a pocket of underused space outside the Depot on Fairfield Street and Travis Street, locally known as Pigeon Triangle, into a welcoming, beautiful, green space where people can spend time and enjoy being outdoors.”
Subject to approval, the garden could be planted as soon as mid-2026. It has the capacity to include new technology developed by Avanade that would allow trees to let their carers know if they are under stress.
“After delivering Mayfield Park, Manchester’s much-loved first new city centre park in more than 100 years, we see the Intelligent Garden as a natural next step,” Nowne said.
“It will build on the success of the park and create a green connection between Piccadilly and Mayfield.”
To learn more, search for reference number 144737/FO/2025 on Manchester City Council’s planning portal.
Deloitte is advising on planning.
Due to it’s location, I suspect it’ll become a new beacon for the homeless to undertake ‘activities’.
By John
Will it have a boating lake and a bowling green?
By Anonymous
Lovely. They need these all over the city centre.
By Anonymous
I sometimes wonder what planet some people live on.
By Steve
Looks good and should be granted consent within 6 weeks. The key to making this a success, however is good long-term management and maintenance, get this right and it will be a positive enhancement for the area, get it wrong and it will be a blight.
By Anonymous
As someone who remembers Piccadilly Gardens in their “heyday” and posts about it on Facebook, I hope to see plenty of flowers here. The more flowers the better. Like it was in the older days. We should plant as many flowers as possible in every conceivable space in Manchester. Starting here. And there should be a big lawn for people to sit on and have picnics. Maybe a huge fountain too. I will be writing to the city centre chief, Mr Karney with my opinion on this.
By Evening News Reader
Most welcome!! Manchester needs much more of these dotted throughout the city.
By Tom
Pigeon Triangle did have some lovely planters and fruit trees on some years ago which were made and supplied by Hulme Community Garden Centre, contracted by Mayfield. Sadly however the development company did not keep up with any maintenance and I fear the same will happen again. As a former manager of Hulme Community Garden Centre we sadly saw this happen all over Greater Manchester…’community gardens’ created by corporations but with no maintenance or stewardship plan in place. With no near neighbours I can’t think who would maintain this garden so hopefully it will be brought into the main park contract. The local community are the taxi drivers and the pigeons who happily coexist! Make sure all the planting is unattractive to peckers!! But good luck!
By Rachel Summerscales
I hope it also delivers safe crossings. In my view that’s the real issue for getting to Mayfield.
By Anonymous
Sooo, more of a back garden than a park
By I eat your face
They will also be pedestrianising the streets in between this site and Mayfield Park. I imagine the area will be quite brilliant in a few years.
By Your face eats my dirt