Now sitting under stockpiles of earth, the RMC Duntroon Oval No.1 will be upgraded in a $2.5 million project in exchange for land needed for the $288 million parkway.

The parkway will link the Monaro Highway to the Federal Highway with 11.5 kilometres of dual carriageway.

Work on the upgrade is expected to start early next year and and should be completed by midyear, weather permitting .

About 3.5 hectares of the Royal Military College's grounds was set aside and prepared for football and cricket grounds, including the No.1 oval, one of Canberra's oldest ovals.

The Department of Defence will continue to own the oval once the parkway is completed.

A Canberra firm, dsb Landscape Architects, has prepared a landscape plan which retains many of the existing mature trees.

A Territory and Municipal Services spokeswoman said white poplars around the oval's perimeter would be removed because of damage caused by their roots. They will be replaced with Cedrus deodara, a species of cedar.

''The original picket fence is being stored securely while the site is being used as a storage area. The intention is to reuse as much of the original fence as possible,'' the spokeswoman said. ''Any damaged sections will be replaced.''