Northern Rivers Talking Turkey

Frank Winter, Director of Technical Service at Kyogle Council, has told the NRTT that Council does not intend moving the new seats which have been installed along Summerland Way.  Mr Winter’s statement was made in response to questions asked by the NRTT following approaches by residents unhappy with the current placement of the seats.
Mr Winter, in responding to concerns that the seats are placed facing away from the street, and that some are badly exposed to the sun, outlined some of the considerations which went into the decision on seat placement. Mr Winter explained that, “[the new seats] need to be easily accessible for cleaning and maintenance. Placing the seats permanently against shop fronts facing out to the street makes maintenance difficult, both for Council removing debris and spills left by users from beneath and behind the seats, and for shop owners who may want to do maintenance or improvements to the front of the business.”
Mr Winter also noted that, “[m]any shop owners object to seats being placed in front of their premises,” because of their potential to block window displays, because of possible damage to shop fronts caused by seat users, or because of potential interference to their operations generally.
“The main purpose of the seats is to enable shoppers, particularly the elderly, to rest while they are shopping, and for this reason the new seats have been spaced evenly along the street on both sides to ensure that those people who need to rest can find a seat nearby and not have to make their way to the one or two places where seats could be safely placed against the shop fronts. The seats have been positioned between the marked car parking bays to avoid doors being accidently opened into the seats,” said Mr Winter.
Mr Winter acknowledged that “placing the seats adjacent to the kerb can increase exposure to sun and rain,” but said, “this cannot be avoided at the present time.” Mr Winter advised that, “[t]o ensure there is some fully protected seating some of the original seats have been retained adjacent to the shop fronts.” “[C]onsideration will be given to alternative locations if additional seating is installed in the future,” said Mr Winter.
The new seats were made possible with funding through the Federal Government’s Regional and Local Community Infrastructure Program.