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Signs of the times: Watson’s whim is now back on message

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It has not been in position for two months yet, but Councillor Mark Watson’s whimsy on the newly pedestrianised bit of the High Street has now got a second sign.

The council has done a ‘reverse ferret’ for its sign for Watson’s whimsy

The art-installation seating, which looks as if it was made from some off-cuts from Ikea, was plonked just outside town centre bars and night clubs just before Christmas.

It wasn’t long before the council felt the need to put a sign on the seat/bench/”parklet”, declaring it a danger to mankind and that users sat on it at their own risk.

It was suggested that a legal genius at the nearby Town Hall had suggested that by attaching such a sign, the council could waive all responsibility and avoid the possibility of Council Tax-payers having to foot the bill for any injury or damages suffered by members of the public falling off the eyesore.

But that sign has now been removed, to be replaced by a new message, intended, perhaps, to be more welcoming. The move is what is often known as “a reverse ferret”.

“Please enjoy me to sit on and relax!”, states the new sign, in bold white type on an eye-catching red background. It adds in slightly smaller text – probably also on advice from the council’s legal department – “Please use with care”. Croydon: a kinder, gentler kind of council.

As one passer-by, familiar with the previous warning sign, said this morning, “I wish they’d make their minds up.

“At least now it’s a bench or a seat, and not a ‘parklet’, whatever that was supposed to be.”

The council has yet to respond to enquiries as to the costs of the design and construction of the “parklet”/bench/seat.

There has already been some on-going maintenance costs incurred, after some of the plants inserted in pots around the edges of Watson’s whimsy were turfed out, unceremoniously, on what must have been a particularly rowdy night down at the Dog and Duck.

The bench/seat/’parklet’, which looks like it was assembled from off-cuts from Ikea. The plants around its edges have already had to be replaced, at least once

Watson is a key member of council leader Tony Newman’s Gang of Four who rule the Town Hall Labour group with a steely grip.

Watson: whimsy

When his specially commissioned bench/seat/”parklet” was first revealed, he gushed that, “The creation of newly crafted seating through the transformation of street space is an exciting concept that will nicely complement the town centre’s evolving street scene. I’m sure the new seating in this area will prove to be a popular addition to the space when the warmer weather arrives.”

That was in December.

Since when, Watson has been moved from his council cabinet position responsible for local business, so losing the £43,000 per year allowances that went with it. The move has been softened, somewhat, by Watson being given a deputy cabinet role, though this is only for three months.

Watson has chosen not to seek selection by the Labour Party to stand for re-election to the council in May.


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