Street furniture is not normally one of the memories one carries home from overseas travels … unless you are actor/director Rachel Ward.
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Rachel is a member of the Nambucca Shire Council’s Highway Bypass Committee and believes amazing street furniture in Macksville (initially) could be something to help draw the tourists in post bypass.
“This town with its riverbank is so beautiful, we want to capitalise on that,” Rachel said.
“With such a wealth of talent and old farming implements, I feel sure we could create something that would make a statement about the town’s logging heritage, its river heritage and also its Aboriginal history.”
And so the call is going out for rusty old tractor seats, old wheels, cross cut saw blades, farm tools … “gorgeous old things that are unused and rusting”.
Materials can be delivered to the Nambucca Valley Men’s Shed in Macksville (open from Tuesday to Thursday, 8am to 4pm), where they will be used to decorate what are going to be relocatable eating cubicles, made from the base of shipping containers with steel frame tubing and steel mesh on three sides.
As Men’s Shed coordinator Stuart Holmes explained:
“The tables will be from cable spools and the sides of the cubicles will be about 800mm. They will take up two parallel car parking spaces and be open on the curbside but enclosed on the other sides for safety. It will also be possible to attach canvas sails for shade in summer.”
He said the idea was to create more outdoor eating spaces with a view of the river.
“It’s a great idea – hopefully they can become a local attraction, which is Macksville needs,” Stuart said.
Rachel said planning for other revitalisation projects were still in the early stages and everything was being done with the blessing of all, including Indigenous elders.
“Nothing will be done that creates controversy.”