The Marble Arch Mound this week

A £2MILLION installation has been branded an “international joke” after plants and turf began sliding off the city council’s flagship summertime attraction in a heavy downpour, forcing it to close.

The 25-metre high Marble Arch Mound officially opened to the public on Monday supposedly boasting unparalleled views of Oxford Street and Hyde Park.

The hollow hill was commissioned by the council in a “if we build it, they will come” attempt to lure shoppers and tourists back to the West End after the pandemic lockdown.

But refunds were already being made this week as workers rushed to prevent foliage slipping down the “slag heap” caused by torrential rain on Sunday.

“We are aware that elements of the Marble Arch Mound are not yet ready for visitors,” red-faced officials said.

Last week abseiling staff could be seen attaching slabs of turf to the side of the mound while some greenery appeared to have been scorched by the heat.

It was hoped 200,000 ticket-holders would visit the mound before the temporary structure is pulled down early next year.

This week the world’s media piled in with criticism of the project, including America’s CNN, the Washington Post and the New York Times.

Labour’s lead councillor for business, Geoff Barraclough, said “The mound has become a national, and now international, joke in less than 24 hours.

“This monument to municipal vanity has made a laughing-stock of Westminster’s leadership and brought the council into disrepute. Westminster Council owes its residents an immediate apology for wasting £2million of their money on this folly.”

Just a fortnight ago council leader Rachael Robathan said: “It’s London’s most talked-about tourist attraction and I really encourage residents and visitors to come and see what the fuss is all about.”

Some optimists have suggested this week the widespread mocking of the mound may work to its advantage by bringing day-trippers in for sarcastic social media pictures. It has been suggested that a tongue-in-cheek Save the Mound campaign could be launched when the temporary structure is dismantled.

This week the Extra spoke to people at the mound who seemed in favour of the project.

Katie, who did not want to give a second name, said: “I do like it. I think it’s quite an interesting installation. I do appreciate it’s probably cost a few million, I get that, money has to come back. But it would have been nice if it was a little bit of a treat for Londoners and tourists after the lockdown.”

Bayswater resident Jafar said: “I live nearby so I’ve seen it since the beginning. But I didn’t know what it was, but now it looks amazing… Of course I’d go up it, I want to see how everything looks from up there.”

Andrew, who lives nearby, added: “I would not pay to go up it, I’d rather just walk up a normal hill in the countryside for nothing. It doesn’t impress me. There’s plenty of other architecture and more interesting buildings around here to look at than that thing.”

At the mound on Tuesday Labour councillor Paul Dimoldenberg said: “If you’re lucky you can see Starbucks and McDonald’s, I don’t think you can even see Marble Arch itself. It’s full of scaffolding, it’s got rubbish bins round the sides. It’s not a good advert for London. It’s not a good advert for the West End, and it really is a waste of £2million.”

Westminster Council said in a statement: “We are aware that elements of the Marble Arch Mound are not yet ready for visitors.

“We are working hard to resolve this over the next few days. In light of the delay, we are offering anybody who has booked a visit during the first week a return ticket free of charge so that they can enjoy the full experience including the Lightfield art installation, M&S Food, and the landscape once it has had time to bed in and grow.”

Architects MVRDV blamed the “challenging weather” and how “unpredictable” it is working with plants and trees for how it looked but assured the public “it will get better”.