The design of the ‘parklet’ going into Park St has been revealed by Masterton District Council and it features plenty to do.
The south side of Park St will be pedestrianised from January 7 to February 10 with activities set up around a ‘Play on Park’ theme.
An artist’s impression shows a play lawn, a skate zone, market, food court, an area with basketball hoops, and a green area with planter boxes.
A parklet is a shared community space designed to show what a town centre redevelopment could look like.
A replica of the first parklet on King St will also be put in on Queen St outside Charlie’s Lane, beside Paper Plus.
Jonathan Hooker, Masterton district councillor and member of the newly-established town centre reference group, said it was exciting to see the temporary initiatives popping up around the town centre.
“These temporary projects are about experimenting with different designs and ideas to learn what works,” Hooker said.
“The lessons from this first stage of the town centre revamp are being fed into the design of permanent changes.”
The council launched its town centre revamp project in November with the first temporary parklet in King St.
The parklets are temporary areas for the public usually in spaces traditionally used for parking cars.
A key objective of the Park St parklet is to increase the linkage between the centre of town and Queen Elizabeth Park, Hooker said.
The reference group includes representatives of interest groups and the community to act as a sounding board to the design process.
“Similar projects in other towns and cities have demonstrated significant benefits for both the community and neighbouring businesses,” Hooker said.
“For example, some businesses have reported a 20 per cent uplift in revenue because there are more people around and they stay around for longer; that’s one of the things we are keen to test with business owners.”
