22 November 2018

King Street will be transformed into a mini Latin America on Saturday as Masterton celebrates the launch of its town centre revamp.

Between 2:30pm and 4:30pm a Latin fiesta will take over part of King Street with salsa dancing, music and activities to entertain all ages including a piñata game, limbo and face-painting.

The fiesta marks the official opening of Masterton’s first ‘parklet’ – a shared public amenity established in street space traditionally used for car parking.

The parklet, dubbed “Latin Corner”, is outside the Don Luciano café and will be an extension of the café during business hours, but free for public use after hours.

Masterton Mayor Lyn Patterson said it was exciting to see change taking shape in the town centre.

“The parklet concept gives us an opportunity to explore ideas and how our community might use new public spaces,” Mayor Patterson said.

“The idea of a parklet is simple, but the benefits can be significant for both the public and nearby businesses.

“I’m looking forward to dusting off my dancing shoes and joining in on the fiesta fun.”

The first phase of the town centre revamp involves reimagining how existing public spaces are used, such as transforming vehicle parks into parklets. The temporary reuse of these spaces will remain in place for a matter of months.

The second phase will integrate learnings from the temporary public spaces to form permanent public spaces.

More information about the overarching strategy for rejuvenating Masterton’s town centre is available at www.mastertontown.nz

ENDS

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