Shoppers and visitors to Batemans Bay’s central business district might notice several trees were removed from Orient Street this week.
The tree removal was part of Eurobodalla Council’s $1.6 million Batemans Bay streetscaping project, underway to reinvigorate Batemans Bay’s town centre.
Council’s Director of Infrastructure Services Warren Sharpe said the trees would be replaced and additional trees would be planted in the vicinity.
“Removing the existing trees in Orient Street was about achieving the best use of space,” he said.
“By taking out the established trees and replacing them with new ones in different locations, we were able to provide more parking in Orient Street, including an accessible car park, as well as plant more trees than were there previously.”
The new mature Tuckeroo trees are consistent with those planted in Clyde and North Streets and are a more suitable species for the area.
Mr Sharpe said the concept was taken to the community during the planning phase.
“We went through a very extensive community engagement process, where we asked the community whether they would like to retain the trees or gain more parking. We are pleased that in the end we managed to achieve both,” he said.
“As it turns out, most of the trees were root-bound. Due to the space reconfiguration the new trees will actually have more space to spread their roots.”
Meanwhile, construction of a new raised pedestrian crossing near the Batemans Bay Bakehouse in Orient Street also began this week. Parking in the vicinity is expected to be impacted while construction continues over the next three to four weeks.
Streetscaping work will continue through the July school holidays with the aim of completing the project by September.
Council continues to encourage shoppers into the work zone to visit their favourite stores and cafes while the streetscaping is underway.
Tuckeroo - Photo by Mark Marathon - CC BY-SA 3.0.
