Dubbo Regional mayor Ben Shields is hoping for a flood of requests to close Dubbo walkways to make the city more safe.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
On Monday night, Dubbo Regional Council decided to close a walkway between Davidson Drive and Gregory Court. It's one of numerous walkways the council has decided to close to prevent anti-social activity.
Cr Shields said the walkways were a "design mistake" from back in the 1980s when they planned the city's estates.
"They're no more than a few metres wide but very long and all it does is give way for an anti-social element," the mayor said.
"In a lot of cases they're just terrorising neighbourhoods because the wrong people are using these lanes for the wrong reasons."
ALSO MAKING NEWS:
About five lanes have now been closed by council and Cr Shields is happy for even more to be blocked.
"Anyone who has these small pedestrian lanes next to their house, or in their area, contact the mayor's office. I'm more than happy to go through the process and see if it's able to be closed," he said.
"There are small occasions when we can't do it but a lot of the time we can close them. It's something I'm very keen to do because it makes the city safer.
"This council has a good record now when it comes to closing these lanes because good, ordinary citizens are not using them. It's some of the feral aspects of society using them and the more we can close the better."
Cr Shields said he hoped for a "flood of residents" to come forward about their own problem walkways.
While each laneway is judged on a case-to-case basis, the mayor said in the majority of situations it can be closed.
It is then sold to one of the neighbours at market value or, if that's not allowed under the zoning, council will construct a fence to block it off.
When the neighbourhood brings forward a concern, Cr Shields said council made sure to contact all the neighbours to make sure they agree. If the neighbourhood is happy and it's approved by council, the walkways can be closed.
Cr Shields said he had received great feedback from the neighbourhoods, especially in the Avian Estate. The residents felt much safer, he said.