Mežotne Palace Park Stays Closed as Arborists Set to Start Work in Late November

Mežotne Palace Park, managed by the Rundāle Palace Museum in Latvia, has been closed to visitors throughout the autumn. Entry has been barred for safety reasons since a summer storm in August. The museum has signed a contract with arborists, who plan to start work in the park in late November. The park can reopen once that work is finished.

Ieva Reinvalde, head of the museum's park department, says museum staff have dealt with most of the storm damage on their own. Broken branches are still caught in the trees and some treetops are damaged, and these cannot be removed without professionals. The service contract was signed after a successful procurement procedure, but the arborists' workload is causing the delay, as the museum is waiting in line for their services.

Once the hazardous trees and branches have been removed and the grounds tidied, the park will be reopened to the public. The museum has not yet given a specific date.

Procurement began before the storm

Ilze Rence, the museum's public relations specialist, explains that the tender for tree maintenance at Rundāle Palace and Mežotne Palace Park was announced in August, before the storm. It covered routine work: crown shaping, removal of dry branches and installation of branch support systems. Extra work caused by the storm damage had not been anticipated.

After the storm, museum staff inspected the park and assessed which tasks required certified specialists.

The tender was won by the company SIA Labie koki, which offered the lowest price and met the museum's requirements. The contract for the planned crown maintenance was signed for 12,005 euros excluding value-added tax (VAT). After the storm, an additional agreement of 1,505 euros excluding VAT was added to deal with hazardous consequences in the park. The total contract value is 13,510 euros excluding VAT, or 16,347.10 euros including VAT.