I’m glad Ian noticed that there were changes in the block where the old police station stands as we passed at the other end of the street, on our way to buy bus tickets earlier this week.
When we went back to investigate, we noticed the fence has been lowered and the vines and trees that were growing through the walls and roof have been removed. It looked promising that things were going to move forward from that abandoned look it has had ever since we first spotted it.
However, now the trees are gone from the street side, too. Less shade is never great. When walking, which is most of the time, we often take shadier streets, even when the distance is greater, just for the shade. So many of the footpaths are either swallowed in carts and out door seating for roadside stalls, used for parking, lined with laundry, piled with abandoned possessions and throw-away junk or cluttered with supplies for construction. Walking anywhere requires carefully selecting a route and using the roads as often as the pavements. Yet we have continued to be walkers and still clock up five or more kilometers daily. Still it is no easy task, but I digress.
Tuk tuk drivers were taking a break in the shade of those trees less than a week ago. Some were in hammocks in remorques, others eating lunch from the backseat of the smaller tuk tuks, I refer to as beetles. Often the drivers are sleeping or chatting together or even sitting opposite each other with a wooden chess board between them and a game in progress.
I fear the loss of those street trees doesn’t augur well for the longevity of the building. I’m hoping they are going to restore or renovate and not demolish but I do have my doubts. This whole precinct has some fabulous renovations and ethical design development being proposed. Maybe something innovative and stylish will appear.
Am I the eternal optimist?
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