A concrete chess table installed in a Nottingham car park has been removed just a month after being installed following criticism from local residents.
The table and accompanying seats, which were placed in Winchester Street car park in December, were taken away after being branded "ludicrous" by community members.
Council workers were spotted removing the controversial installation, which had drawn criticism over both its location and implementation.
Former independent council candidate Colin Hardwick confirmed the removal, criticising the lack of public engagement.
Council workers were spotted removing the controversial installation
Nottingham City Council Facebook
"This ludicrous project was implemented with no consultation with Sherwood people and has been taken away in the same fashion," he said.
The installation had sparked debate among local residents who questioned both its purpose and placement in the car park area.
Local business owners suggested the chess table would have been better suited to nearby Woodthorpe Park.
Lisa Douglas, who runs The Winchester pub, said: "We have a lovely park just up the road where this would have been perfectly placed and people could have enjoyed it in safe, pretty surroundings. The idea itself is great, but the execution is not."
MORE LIKE THIS:
- 'Just move house!' Neighbour row erupts as man's van plastered in 'passive aggressive' notes
- Couple ordered to remove CCTV erected outside their own home after 12 YEARS after neighbours complained of 'privacy concerns'
- Neighbour row boils over as family 'break into garden and steal bin' after filling their backyard with 'piles of rubbish'
Winchester Street car park
Google maps
She also expressed concerns about the impact on parking, noting that the installation removed "much-needed parking spaces from our main car park."
Adding to the controversy, the chess table was found to have been incorrectly designed, with a black square at the bottom right-hand corner of the board instead of the regulation white square.
A Nottingham city council spokesman had previously defended the installation, stating the chess tables were "deliberately experimental by nature".
"The chess tables are intended to be general tables to sit at," the spokesman said, explaining they could be used for various activities beyond chess, including having tea or reading.
Local business owners suggested the chess table would have been better suited to nearby Woodthorpe Park
Wikimedia
The council maintained that the installations would be evaluated to determine their success and popularity.
"These projects are deliberately experimental by nature, so will be evaluated and reviewed down the line to see how successful and popular they've been," the spokesman had said.
The council had indicated that based on public feedback, such installations could either be removed if unused or additional tables could be added if they proved popular.
