Disgraceful? Lansdowne in for a tidy after complaints from shop owners

Lansdowne's shopping centre is going to get a tidy-up, although the Masterton District Council doesn't agree with retailers that it is "disgraceful".
The council has taken on board some of the retailers concerns aired in the Times-Age this week and is "happy to arrange appropriate repairs for any minor maintenance issues in the area", engineer consultancy manager Hamish Pringle said.
The area is also likely to get new rubbish bins in keeping with the rest of the town and it will get rid of an out-of-date recycling sign leaning against a fence.
Irate retailers in the area expressed their frustration this week at having no upgrades in their neighbourhood. They say Kuripuni and the central shopping area is getting all the attention.
Mr Pringle, the manager of engineering consultancy says the council has acknowledged the criticism and is working through the concerns.
"However, some of the criticism should not be headed in the council's direction," he said.
With regard to the overflowing recycling bins, he says there are no council recycling facilities in the Lansdowne area.
"It is our understanding that there is a private arrangement between shop owners and a private contractor for cardboard recycling.
"Council is not responsible for cleaning up that facility. Nor is council responsible for picking up rubbish on private property."
Mr Pringle says the car parking area behind the liquor store is privately owned and not the council's concern.
With regards to signs showing people the way to the shopping centre, the council had asked Transit if it could put up a Shopping Centre sign on State Highway 2 but was turned down. Transit is the ultimate authority to approve or decline signs on state highways.
Mr Pringle said he did not think it would be feasible for the angle parking in First Street that had been suggested by some shop owners, because it was too narrow.
Ironically, the call from Java Cafe to have the car parks in front of its premises turned into a footpath for extra dining is a reverse of a few years ago when the business there at the time, a chemist, asked for car parks to be created, which the council did.
"You can't win," Mr Pringle said.
Back in 1995, the Lansdowne shopping centre had concept drawings created as part of the entire shopping centre upgrade but missed out on any landscaping that occurred in the middle of Masterton and at Kuripuni.
A figure of $250,000 sits in the council's long term community plan labelled "Lansdowne CBD upgrade", pencilled for 2009/10.
But the project has yet to make the council's priority list, meaning it remains unconfirmed.