CHAIR of Orange City Council’s crime prevention and community safety committee Glenn Taylor says closing Anson Street for a mall could turn the area into a hub of anti-social activity similar to Post Office Lane.
Cr Taylor told the Central Western Daily he couldn’t rule out the area attracting the same sore of people who frequent Post Office Lane.
“We do have a problem with Post Office Lane and the anti-social activity there has been highlighted recently,” he said.
“I have fears that if we block off Anson Street it could turn into a problem area as well.
“The area could become like The Corso in Manly that attracts big groups of people, and that could be a problem.”
Cr Taylor said safety concerns weren’t the only reason he didn’t support turning Anson Street into a mall.
“I think it’s vital we retain a cab rank near Woolies, I don’t think that’s negotiable,” he said.
“Moving the taxi rank to where it is now was an extraordinarily complex process and the cab rank serves a lot of people who don’t have motor vehicles, including the elderly and disabled people.”
Cr Taylor said while the pedestrian crossing continued to pose a safety problem for people attempting to cross the road, he’d prefer traffic conditions in the area to remain the same.
“The CBD (central business district) at the moment is basically choking,” he said.
“Traffic flow is very hectic and if we cut off Anson Street that traffic will just be transferred somewhere else.”
tracey.prisk@ruralpress.com