Street furniture from Queen Street will get a new home in the town square thanks to the Mens Shed.

The old benches and bins will be reused in the temporary space after getting a spruce up in the workshop.

“The guys have been very generous with their time giving the furniture a bit of TLC,” says Project Manager Laura MacLean.

Mens Shed manager John Bush said supporting the community was a big part of what the shed does.

“We have the Lakeview kids over for lessons, we build toys and furniture for day cares, people bring us the repairs that no one else will do. Every day at the shed is different but it’s always about making a space for men to support each other and the community.”

The benches and bins are more than 30 years old and were fabricated in Masterton for the last town centre upgrade.

“They weigh a tonne! The steel frames are solid but they’ll get a wash, sand, and repaint before they go back out. We also need to sort out the wooden slats which have seen better days.”

The Mens Shed will be hosting a gate sale this Saturday from 8am til 12 noon to raise funds for improvements to their space.

The town hall site has been prepared by Quality Demolition and a team from Green by Nature will start work on planting, grassing and installing the furniture in the next few weeks.

“We want to save money wherever we can on the temporary space, so re-using what we have is the responsible thing to do. Some of the other street furniture is being given to coastal communities who will re-purpose it,” says Laura.

The expanded town square and carpark is expected to open in June.