By Chris Thomson | posted on April 20, 2018
A NUMBER of gnomes have been removed from the Mount Barker roundabout due to fears they may stymie a public consultation process on the future of the circular intersection, and compromise safety on Albany Highway.
A solitary gnome appeared on the roundabout a fortnight ago, followed by half-a-dozen others that joined it in greeting southbound motorists to the Shire of Plantagenet’s largest town.
Then, one day the gnomes disappeared.
Acting Shire CEO John Fathers revealed it was he who arranged for “8 or 9 gnomes” to be removed and placed in protective custody at the shire.
“I got them taken away because I didn’t want to see a proliferation of gnomes on the roundabout given the council is going out to public consultation about what it wants to have seen on the roundabout,” he said.
“The more people put things like that into the roundabout, the more people are going to be disappointed when we have to take them away.
“And I didn’t really want to encourage people to park up on a major intersection of Albany Highway and put themselves to any danger.”
Mr Fathers said one owner had fronted up with a small amount of “bail money” to spring a gnome from the council clink, and that the cash would be donated to charity.
“We’ve had one of the owners come back and pick theirs up,” he said.
“I think she took away about three that she identified were hers.
“We’ll just hold them in the office and are quite happy to give them back to the owners if they come and collect them.”
A month-long consultation period on the roundabout’s aesthetics, foreshadowed a while back by The Weekender (‘Barker roundabout action’, February 10), will start this week.
“It’s a pretty important entry for the shire,” Mr Fathers said.
“It is amazing; everyone has an opinion on it.”
He said that whatever gets decided for the roundabout, the aim will be to have it “present a good image for Mt Barker”.
