Businesses along Benerembah Street have welcomed the news better lighting may be on the way, with many claiming the street becomes too dark at night and encourages crime.
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Griffith City Council is looking into the cost of installing improved street lighting along the road, after a petition was brought to council with the signatures of Griffith residents who found the current lighting insufficient.
Owner of Pedders Suspension, John Ward, has lived and worked on the street for over 50 years.
He said the area gets "very dark" at night and improved lighting would help prevent crime.
"It definitely needs some lighting," he said. "A couple of places have been knocked off a few times. Westpoint Motors have been broken into quite a few times."
That area has been an eyesore for such a long time
- Councillor Anne Napoli
Robert Gee is an employee at Griffith Tile Centre, which has also been impacted by crime.
"Over the years there have been break-ins in here," he said. "A lot of windows have been smashed periodically.
"Having better lighting would be a deterrant."
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As well as improving safety, Mr Gee said better lighting would benefit businesses along the street by making the area more appealing.
Council is also investigating the cost of a "beautification" project along the street, in the same vein as the ongoing Yambil Street Upgrade project.
In the most recent council meeting, Councillor Anne Napoli said the look of the street was in need of improvement.
"That area has been an eyesore for such a long time," she said. "It's an entrance to our city and I've had so many complaints that it doesn't look good."
"We have some beautiful buildings, some other wonderful places in our city and [Benerembah Street] really needs some work."
Tasha Calcutt, an employee at Foot Steps Podiatry, said upgrading the street would be a good idea.
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"I think beautification would be beneficial," she said. "It's quite dreary and drab at the moment."
"Now that they've changed things on the main street and on Yambil Street, you would think it would the next step would be to do something out here."
The findings from council's investigations into upgrading Benerembah Street are expected to be finalised by the start of March.
What do you think of the potential upgrades to Benerembah Street?
Monty Jacka
Monty is a journalist at The Daily Advertiser in Wagga. He can be reached at m.jacka@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Monty is a journalist at The Daily Advertiser in Wagga. He can be reached at m.jacka@austcommunitymedia.com.au
