By Dominique Tassell
The trees removed from Palmerin Street last year will not be replaced with planter boxes in time for the Jumpers and Jazz in July Festival, Southern Downs Regional Council has confirmed.
When asked why the Council waited until the weeks leading up to the Festival to install the boxes, Southern Downs Mayor Vic Pennisi stated that it was not a case of having left it to the last minute.
Mayor Pennisi stated that issues with procurement have caused the delay.
Chief Executive Dave Burges said they will do whatever is required to help the Festival
Warwick Art Gallery Director Karina Devine said the spots outside the Criterion Hotel were not allocated to any festival-goers and were always going to be an in-house project, so no one has missed out.
She said it was always going to be a “last-minute scramble” to decorate that section, and she’s “not too concerned”.
“I’ve asked them to send me some photos because there’s infrastructure like pipes,” she said. “We’re trying to disguise those in a Jumpers and Jazz way.”
Karina said while the groups normally in front of the Criterion Hotel had to be reallocated, everyone is quite happy with the trees they’ve got.
“It’s all just a matter of communicating with people,” she said.
Other changes to the tree jumpers offering this year include the trees along Fitzroy Street near Aldi no longer being decorated due to safety concerns.
Karina said the trees are too big and hard to decorate now, and trees along Grafton Street were previously taken out of commission for this reason too.
The trees outside Warwick Police Station will now be decorated, as will the trees in the Council car park.
Karina said they’re trying to focus on Palmerin Street.
“I think it will look really great,” she said.
Karina said she looks at trees in the CBD all the time, and how they might be used in the future.
She said the trees outside Kmart would be perfect to include in the Festival, but cannot be used as they would require attendees of the Festival to walk across the road.
If this section of the road was closed as others are, this may be a possible addition.
Karina also said she wonders if they could do anything with the trees outside the Post Office intersection.
“The few years ahead will be different if we do go with the changes to planter boxes,” she said.
The planter boxes were set to replace four trees removed last year from outside the Criterion Hotel.
At the time, the removal prompted an outcry from the community.
A Council spokesperson stated last year that Council wants to retain the CBD’s iconic tree-lined streetscape but did state that “if successful, the current trial could…possibly be rolled out further”.
The trees were removed in part due to the roots damaging footpaths and the street.
Southern Downs Chief Executive, Dave Burges, stated last year that “the trees were not in the best of health, they had some disease”.
“There has been damage to infrastructure such as footpaths and it was felt that would be a good trial section.”
He stated that damage caused by the trees to Warwick CBD streets is very evident.
“So we chose those four, we didn’t consult with community because we had to do it, and we tried to minimise the impact by doing just four at this stage.
Mr Burges stated at the time that the Council would engage with the community for feedback on the planter boxes before rolling out anything further.
He also stated the trees in planter boxes would be mature trees that could be used during the Jumpers and Jazz Festival.
Earlier this month, work was done outside the Criterion Hotel to close up the holes left behind after the trees were removed.
