Exeter's city parklets provoke mixed reaction from public

One of the parklets in Exeter is in Fore Street

Urban seating areas with plants around them - called parklets - have met with a mixed reaction from the public.

Two parklets have been introduced in Exeter to offer the public a pleasant space to sit and socialise in the city.

Exeter's Business Improvement District (BID) got £50,000 from the UK Government's Shared Prosperity Fund to pay for the project.

Some people in Exeter said the parklets were "awesome" but others thought the money could have been better spent.

Patrick Sharkey thought the parklet was "awesome"

Patrick Sharkey came across the parklet on Musgrave Row, near the city's library, for the first time on Friday.

He said: "I think they're awesome. I think they're amazing for young people as well.

"Exeter's a beautiful place and the way they've done it is perfect."

Dorothy Tinsley said the parklet provided somewhere to sit and wait for her minibus

Dorothy Tinsley travels in and out of Exeter with friends on a community minibus and said the parklets were "a lovely idea".

She said: "It was such a wonderful surprise to see that it provided such wonderful seating where we waited for our bus."

Ms Tinsley said the parklets were "superbly planted" with "a huge variety of plants".

Christy Wool and Karen Dignam wondered whether the money could be better spent

Other people in the city were not convinced the parklets were such a good use of public money.

Karen Dignam said: "It does brighten up the area but it's lots of money to spend on beautification.

"It's possibly not the best thing we could have spent that amount of money on."

Christy Wool said: "It is a bit tucked away - I don't know how many people would actually know it's here."

The two parklets in Exeter cost £50,000

Another woman, who did not want to give her name, said: "I was just quite surprised that the two that have been installed cost £50,000 when Exeter has a lot more important things to do with its money.

"It would be nice to repair the potholes and do better upkeep on the parks we've already got.

"Whether anyone is going to use this and how long it will last before it's vandalised - it just seems to me it wasn't the best use of funds."

Nicola Wheeler from Exeter's BID said the parklets were part of a growing trend

Nicola Wheeler, chief executive of the Exeter BID, InExeter, said the funding was specifically available to improve public spaces and could not have been spent on other public services.

She said the parklets were "vibrant and attractive" and part of a growing trend to create "lovely urban seating spaces".

Ms Wheeler hoped the parklets would encourage people into the city and provide a space for people "to just pause, reflect and connect with their surroundings and other people".