Timaru CBD footpath closed for police exercise
A coned-off section of footpath at the south end of Timaru’s Stafford St has not been closed to allow for work on the Theatre Royal to be undertaken.
Instead, the section of footpath from 106 to 132 Stafford St was closed yesterday for two days while police took part in tactical training at a building in the area.
After seeing the cones and closed footpath, residents contacted The Timaru Herald asking if work had begun on the Theatre Royal and Heritage Hub project.
However, a council spokesperson confirmed it was “not part of the Theatre Royal redevelopment’’.
A police spokesperson confirmed the training and said the venue enabled staff to “train in an unfamiliar environment and enhance our critical incident response skills’’.
“Every day we ask our officers to go into environments that are unpredictable and rapidly evolving,’’ the spokesperson said.
“To be there for our community when it counts, police undertake regular training to enable staff to keep our communities safe.’’
The spokesperson said prior to the training, police liaised with local authorities to ensure the training could take place safely and delivered letters notifying nearby businesses it would be taking place.
They said police were addressing concerns around parking and road cordons.
“This training venue enables staff to train in an unfamiliar environment and enhance our critical incident response skills. These types of exercises could not hap pen without the support of our local communities, and “we thank them for their co-operation and support’’, they said.
A fixed price for the Theatre Royal and Heritage Hub project is expected in June or July after councillors agreed to accept the estimated costs sight unseen at a meeting in March.
The theatre, which has been closed for five years, has been the subject of much debate in the community.
Concerns that the public debate included very little in support of the project to develop the Theatre and Heritage Hub prompted Timaru residents Jess Young and Aaron Segar to launch START; Save Timaru’s Arts and Rebuild our Theatre in March.