14 June, 2019

Council finally fesses up over seat-disappearance mystery

The mystery of the bench that vanished last month has been solved – and a replacement promised.

Auckland Council, which initially said it had no record of the bench on its “geospatial information system” – and sent out a team who could find no trace of it – has revealed three weeks later that the seat was removed in May, as it had deteriorated and was no longer safe.

The bench sat on a small park at the corner of Kerr St and Victoria Rd and offered a view down Devonport’s main road and a shady spot for a break or meeting at the top end of town.

The council said it was not replaced due to the proximity of another seat in the vicinity.

“Regrettably, the original seat within the pocket park was not listed as an asset in the council’s geospatial information system due to it not being transferred when the streetscape garden was passed from Auckland Transport to Auckland Council,” council head of operational management and maintenance Agnes McCormack says.

“We can also confirm that the original Council finally fesses up over seat-disappearance mystery seat did not have a memorial plaque on it.” She said the bench, which was removed without the knowledge of the Devonport-Takapuna Local Board, would be replaced.

“Due to the obvious appreciation of the original seat within the pocket park by the community, this will be replaced with a historical-style bench, in keeping with the original, in the new financial year.”

This article originally appeared in the June 14 edition of The Devonport Flagstaff. Download PDF.